Shocking number of Scottish Government 'managers' shows need for urgent action

Government needs to be as efficient as possible to free up resources and money for frontline services like the NHS and education

Imagine starting work at a new job and, on your first day, being introduced to your personal manager, who will monitor your every move. Of course, this would never happen in the real world. However, in the decidedly surreal world of the Scottish Government, this is the apparent situation, with Joe Griffin, the new Permanent Secretary, telling MSPs that just under 50 per cent of government civil servants are line managers.

Now, we assume that the situation is not quite as farcical as it seems on the face of it. Presumably, most of these managers have duties of their own that keep them gainfully employed, enabling the rest of the workforce to do their jobs without ridiculous levels of micromanagement.

That said, coupled with figures showing the civil service is at its highest level in Scottish Parliament history, with 27,400 staff, it clearly suggests there is considerable scope for efficiency savings and workforce restructuring so that there are fewer ‘bosses’ and more workers.

It may also help explain why Scotland’s public finance minister, Ivan McKee, believes £1 billion can be saved over five years by cutting “back-office costs”.

READ MORE: The ‘extraordinarily high’ manager ratio in the SNP government

John Swinney needs to make government efficiency a real priority (Picture: Jeff J Mitchell) | Getty Images

SNP MSP Michelle Thomson described the number of line managers as “extraordinarily high” and asked what plans were in place to reduce it. There was no “specific plan” to do so, Griffin admitted, but added the issue was “in play”.

All this may appear rather dull, not an issue that will be raised on the doorstep by many voters during the looming election campaign. However, the effects of inefficient government are real and serious.

Money spent on too many government civil servants is money that could otherwise have been used to reduce class sizes to within acceptable limits by employing more teachers or to cut waiting times for cancer treatment, which have just recorded the worst figures since records began.

Efficient government can have a very real effect on the quality of vital public services like education and, in the case of the NHS, may prove to be a matter of life and death for some people. As such, it should be a priority for all politicians.