I move:
That a supplementary sum not exceeding £107,000 be granted to defray the charge which will come in course of payment during the year ending 31 December, 1989; for the salaries and expenses of the Civil Service Commission and the Local Appointments Commission.
I recommend to the House a Supplementary Estimate for the Civil Service Commission to cover the cost this year of initiating limited recruitment in certain grades. As the House is aware, the embargo on the filling of vacancies in the Civil Service was introduced as one of several measures to contain the cost of the public service pay bill with the objective of bringing this category of expenditure into line with budgetary and economic realities. While there has been a considerable improvement in the budgetary situation, largely as a result of such economies, I still consider it essential to maintain for a further period that policy of containment. Accordingly, the embargo in the Civil Service will remain in place for the remainder of this year and for 1990. Within this framework, however, I do foresee some limited scope for the filling of certain vacancies in the future where so doing would lead to benefits to the Exchequer which are immediate, significant and continuing and which cannot be otherwise attained.
The number of posts that will be filled depends on the level of natural wastage among staff from now to the end of 1990. What I must emphasise is that there will be no question of systematically filling posts which have become vacant in recent years or of allowing current overall numbers to drift upwards. In July 1981 the numbers serving in the Civil Service as distinct from the wider public service were over 32,000. Since then, these numbers have been reduced to the more sustainable level of approximately 26,800. It is my intention to reduce Civil Service numbers somewhat further to at least the levels that obtained in 1977 before the public service job creation programme of that time took effect.
Further savings must be achieved, for the fact remains that, as a nation, we are still heavily in debt — our debt-GNP ratio is about twice the EC average. This debate represents a major burden on the economy and the cost of servicing it is still taking up a huge amount of resources — over £2 billion in the current year or £40 a week for every worker in the country. There can be no question, therefore, that the Government can now dispense with expenditure restraint and recommence with whole-scale recruitment into the Civil Service. That would end all the good we have achieved. Realisation of our medium-term economic policy objectives — for a more competitive economy, good economic growth, lower interest rates, lower taxes and more jobs — requires control of expenditure and continuing economies with regard to the public sector wage bill. It must be emphasised, therefore that, as I have said, recruitment will only take place where it can be demonstrated that it will lead to benefits to the Exchequer which are immediate and continuing and which cannot be otherwise attained.
I have accordingly arranged with the Civil Service Commission to initiate recruitment procedures with a view to establishing panels of qualified people so that appointments can be made to clerical, executive and graduate vacancies if required in 1990.
Although most of the expenses involved in the holding of these competitions will arise in 1990, certain additional costs related to the announcing of competitions will arise in 1989. The major portion of the additional expenditure required will be on advertising, printing and increased costs of accommodation for examinations arising from the competitions. These items will increase expenditure from Subhead D of the Vote by £59,000. A further £20,000 for Subhead C will be needed to cover the increased volume of postal and telecommunications activity now anticipated. The commission will also incur some additional staffing costs, which will increase Subhead A1 by £18,000, and travel and incidental costs will also rise by £10,000. In order to proceed with the competitions, therefore, the Civil Service Commission will require additional funding of £107,000 in 1989, which will have to be met by a Supplementary Estimate.
With these comments I commend this Supplementary Estimate to the House.