Burnham is wrong. Devolution will only grow Whitehall
Despite promises to streamline, the Civil Service has only grown and grown. Burnham's devolution will make it worse, says Arthur Reynolds.
Labour MP John Burnham’s plan for devolution will only lead to a larger and more cumbersome Civil Service, warns Arthur Reynolds. Despite pledges to streamline, the civil service has continued to expand over the past year, with a 8,000 headcount increase, according to official statistics. While Labour’s Rachel Reeves promised voluntary exit schemes would reduce the size of the Civil Service, the opposite has occurred – 40,000 new recruits have joined since the 2025 Spring Statement, surpassing the 2,690 who have been voluntarily retired.
Burnham’s strategy is built on the assumption that devolving power to regions will shrink the civil service, but history shows this is not the case. In fact, since 2014, when the coalition launched devolution in England, the civil service workforce has grown by nearly 120,000. Instead of shedding jobs, Whitehall seems to be transforming into a regulatory state that oversees new devolved powers, maintaining control and political risk.
Burnham’s mayoral settlements, while granting mayors more freedom, also create a new layer of bureaucracy overseen by multiple officials from central government. This could lead to an even larger public sector workforce, potentially requiring additional capacity to manage. Burnham’s plans might alienate public sector workers, who are a key voter base for his party, while also failing to deliver the economic model he promises.
Written by urgent.news from City AM's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — it may contain errors, so check the original before relying on it.
