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Smarter Government

My Lords, I am tempted in welcoming the Statement by the Minister to inquire what he thinks it says about the Statement that the Benches behind him are entirely deserted. I do not think that there will be any questions from there. Is that a show of confidence or a true reflection of what his colleagues believe to be in the Statement? A Back-Bencher has rushed in at a signal from the Whips. My question concerns the welcome news that jobs will be moved out of Whitehall and into the regions. In the past, the north-east of England has benefited significantly from such moves, but there is a concern there about the proportion of senior Civil Service grades that are moved out when these discussions take place. In the north-east, where we have a substantial proportion of the workforce in the public sector, we have only 0.1 per cent of senior Civil Service grades compared with an average of 0.9 per cent for England. Therefore, what plans do the Government have to send more Sir Humphreys from Surrey to Sunderland as a way of shaking up government and ensuring a wider reflection of the nation as a whole in Whitehall and our national debate?