by Matthew Flinders, Heidi Houlberg Salomonsen and Thurid Hustedt

Although often overlooked, the rise of populism has placed additional pressures on the relationship between ministers and their senior civil servants. Dismissed as part of ‘the elite’, ‘the establishment’ or even ‘the blob’, the civil service has in many countries been required to adapt and navigate an increasingly fluid set of politico-administrative boundaries. In this context it was highly symbolic that the United Kingdom’s new prime minister, Sir Keir Starmer, issued a direct message to all civil servants as one of his first acts in office.

‘I am so pleased to have this early opportunity to speak directly to every one of you…… working in the Civil Service’ he stated ‘I want you to know that– you have my confidence, my support and, importantly, my respect.’

The fact that the new occupant of No.10 was at exactly the same time trying to install new media management structures underlines the existence of a potential tension between, on the one hand, a ministers desire to respect the civil service and established constitutional relationships, but on the other hand, ensure that officials do promote a positive ‘spin’ on the work of the government.

The root issue is that senior civil servants are expected to be politically neutral and largely anonymous and yet their role in relation to media management brings with it politicising tendencies and risks.  As Rod Rhodes noted in his book Everyday Life in British Government (2011)  ‘…nowadays, senior civil servants speak in public almost as often as ministers’.’

Understanding whether and under which conditions civil servants can respond to requests for advice and assistance in managing the media from ministerial masters is therefore crucial.

How do senior civil servants cope with the pressures of media management, and how does this affect different relationships? Are senior civil servants increasingly required to be ‘promiscuously partisan’ as Peter Aucoin once suggested?

Our extensive research in the United Kingdom, Denmark and Sweden, recently published in Policy & Politics, has helped tease-apart the various layers to this question.

By blending the theory of public sector bargaining with existing studies of politico-administrative media management, and interviewing over sixty officials, ministers and special advisers, our recent study came to three main conclusions.

First and foremost, none of the three cases found evidence of widespread problems in relation to breaching rules, sacrificing neutrality, or undermining anonymity. However, civil servants perceive their political neutrality to be under more pressure than their professional anonymity.

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