First
Civil Service Commissioner, Baroness Prashar, today said that more must be done
to make sure that new recruits to the service understand the values that govern
their work.
Prashar,
who is the senior commissioner responsible for maintaining recruitment
standards in the Civil Service, said pressure on the service made it extremely
important that the Civil Service Code, which sets out the values and boundaries
for work in the service, is actively promoted and properly understood.
Launching
the Commissioners’ Annual Report for 2003-04, she said: “New blood and new
skills are vital to the organisation, and getting the best people available is
imperative. We must also ensure that they understand the code and values that
protect the impartiality of the service.”
In
the past year, two draft Bills on the Civil Service – from the Public
Administration Select Committee and Lord Lester of Herne Hill – have been
published. Both would put the Civil Service Code on a statutory basis.
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The
commissioners have now produced a new web-based version of the code to make it
clearer and more accessible.
