- Constitution Committee Contents

Letter from the Cabinet Office

  On 31 March you asked if the Cabinet Office would be able to provide the Committee, in relation to the inquiry on the Cabinet Office and the Centre of Government, with the following:

(a) any framework documents and other material that might be useful (beyond those hosted on the website), particularly concerning the additional units created since 1997;


(b) past versions of the Cabinet Office organogram (the current version is at http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/media/120072/co_org_chart.pdf; ideally as far back as 1987; and

(c) successive descriptions of the Cabinet Office's role and functions that have been produced since 1997, or even earlier if possible.

  First, if you are not already aware and for background, you might like sight of a very useful Research Paper produced by the House of Commons Library dated 21 December 2005 entitled: The Centre of Government—No 10, the Cabinet Office and HM Treasury. This can be viewed at: http://www.parliament.uk/commons/lib/research/rp2005/rp05-092.pdf

  Second, in response to your request, with the exception of Cabinet Office Departmental Records since 1998 (the link of which is provided below), I am sending hard copies of the documents referred to in the Annex below. I thought you might also find it useful to have the web links where possible and these are included. Some of these documents are mentioned in the Research Paper noted above.

6 May 2009

  (a)

— Modernising Government White Paper and Regulated Documentation (March 1999)

http://www.archive.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/moderngov/whtpaper/index.htm

— Wiring it Up—Whitehall's Management of cross Cutting Politices and Services (January 2000)

http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/strategy/work_areas/accountability.aspx

— Guide to the Centre of Government (January 2001)

http://www.archive.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/roleofcentre/

— Performance and Innovation Unit Paper—Better Policy Delivery and Design (January 2001)

http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/media/cabinetoffice./strategy/assets/betterpolicy2.pdf

— Wiring it Up—A Progress Report to the Prime Minister (2001)

http://www.archive.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/servicefirst/2001/joinedup/Wiring%201t%20Up%20Progress%20 Report%2024%20Aug.doc

— Government Communications Review Group Final Report (January 2004)

http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/reports/communications_review.aspx

— Civil Service Reform Delivery and Values (February 2004)

http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/reports/delivery_value.aspx

— Excellence and Fairness: Achieving World Class Public Services (June 2008)

http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/strategy/publications/excellence_and_fairness.aspx

— Civil Service Reform (March 2009)

http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/reports/civil_service_reform.aspx

  (b)  Various Cabinet Office organograms from:

— September 1997;

— January 1998;

— July 1998;

— September 1998;

— Extract from the Government Expenditure Plans 1999-2000 to 2001-02 (March 1999);

— Extract from the Government Expenditure Plans 2000-01 to 2001-02 (April 2000);

— Extract from Departmental Report (May 2003);

— July 2001;

— December 2002;

— Extract from Departmental Report (May 2003);

— April 2004;

— September 2004;

— June 2005;

— November 2005;

— May 2006;

— April 2007;

— June-November 2007;

— February 2008;

— December 2008; and

— January 2009.

  (c)  I am sending to you hard copies of the Cabinet Office entries from the Government's Expenditure Plans for the period 1987-97.

  Cabinet Office Departmental Reports since 1998 can be found on the Cabinet Office website at:

http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/about_the_cabinet_office/reports.aspx

  This information should provide the Committee with full and complete details regarding the Cabinet Office's role and functions since 1987.

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