Staffing the Summit — the Administration of the Core Executive: Convergent Trends and National Specificities

Abstract

The Central Policy Review Staff (CPRS) was set up by the British government in 1970 to improve strategic planning and co-ordination; to fill the hole in the centre. One of its most famous reports explored British overseas representation. The subject matter seems less than exciting. So why did the report become famous? The authors concluded that: much of the overseas work was unnecessary; the functions were not effective; and they were not good value for money (for example, diplomatic entertainment and overseas information work). The core criticism was that the diplomatic service had not adjusted to Britain’s declining role in the world. The report made over 400 recommendations. It also made the headlines. It was subjected to vituperative attack. Its authors were ‘trendies’, the report was ‘barmy’, its proposals were ‘penny pinching’, the team were not patriotic and its members were too junior for the task. It took on ‘too many parts of the British Establishment at once’.¹