PS don’t forget the PPS
Daniel Korski 8:00pm
In this exchange from the “Yes, Minister” TV series Sir Humphrey welcomes
the newly-appointed James Hacker to his department.
'James Hacker: Who else is in this department?
Sir Humphrey Appleby: Well briefly, Sir, I am the Permanent Under Secretary of State, known as the Permanent Secretary. Woolley here is your Principal Private Secretary, I too have a Principal Private Secretary and he is the Principal Private Secretary to the Permanent Secretary. Directly responsible to me are ten Deputy Secretaries, 87 Under Secretaries and 219 Assistant Secretaries. Directly responsible to the Principal Private Secretary are plain Private Secretaries, and the Prime Minister will be appointing two Parliamentary Under Secretaries and you will be appointing your own Parliamentary Private Secretary.
James Hacker: Do they all type?
Sir Humphrey Appleby: None of us can type. Mrs. McKay types. She is the secretary.'
Of all the secretaries Sir Humphrey mentions, the one few people remember is the last one, the Parliamentary Private Secretary – or PPS. As CoffeeHouse readers will know, a PPS is an MP appointed by a minister to be his or her unpaid conduit to the House of Commons. The PPS is meant to act as a minister's eyes and ears and an appointment as a PPS is seen as the first rung on the ladder towards ministerial office. In the Con-Lib government, many MPs who hoped to become ministers in their right own right have had to satisfy themselves with a PPS job.
But now that nearly all PPSs have been appointed, three in particular have the potential to become quite important for the government: Keith Simpson, Tobias Ellwood and Mark Lancaster, who work for William Hague, Liam Fox and Andrew Mitchell respectively. They all know their onions, have all worked with, or have strong links to, their Secretaries of State. But they are also said to get on far better with each other than their Cabinet superiors.
Forging closer ties between the Foreign Office, Ministry of Defence and DFID – a challenge greater than the Prime Minister probably realised it would be and requiring more than just setting up a National Security Council -- could be greatly aided by these three MPs working quietly in the background to ensure that their Secretaries of State can forge a common agenda.
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Chuck Unsworth
June 30th, 2010 8:21pm Report this commentForging closer ties between the Foreign Office, Ministry of Defence and DFID....could be greatly aided by these three MPs working quietly in the background to ensure that their Secretaries of State can forge a common agenda.
paulg
June 30th, 2010 8:21pm Report this commentAs you know daniel communication is the key, but people forget its importance, only when it is understood and implicit, can result be effected.
Communication and coordination are the keys to corporate success.
Chuck Unsworth
June 30th, 2010 8:31pm Report this commentOops, slight over indulgence of Palmer, but:
"Forging closer ties between the Foreign Office, Ministry of Defence and DFID.....could be greatly aided by these three MPs working quietly in the background to ensure that their Secretaries of State can forge a common agenda."
Is this not their job, anyway? A PPS should never be obtrusive, whilst having all of the political skills of a latter-day Prince. He (or rarely, if ever, she) is the power behind the throne, providing armour for his master's unprotected back.
TrevorsDen
June 30th, 2010 9:12pm Report this commentIt would certainly be nice if cabinet ministers got on. It is what their supposed to do.
Augustus
June 30th, 2010 9:53pm Report this commentSounds all very cosy, but where does my MP for NW Norfolk, Henry Bellingham, fit into all this?
Marta Koulakandris
July 1st, 2010 1:24am Report this commentYou always get the sense with your comments on the Foreign Office, to which you are obviously well connected in one way or another, the MoD and wider Whitehall, that you have more than one audience in ind. I am sure that the three you have name checked will be very grateful as they carry the bags and try to look important.
charles hercock
July 1st, 2010 6:35am Report this commentI keep hearing things which emphasise that Fox has to go.As with David Owen medical super egos never translate into good cooperating administration.Let us have an evening of short knives
strapworld
July 1st, 2010 8:15am Report this commentcharles hercock makes a very goood point. I like Fox, BUT when he talks about the British being the last troops out of Afghanistan I worry greatly.
Just who is determining our policy in this god forsaked country? Are the Americans just using us? Does Cameron have the guts to speak up and say PUBLICLY that as far as he is concerned we will NOT be the last to leave?
Fox is placing himself as the voice of the right wing Tory party. I think he should be replaced immediately with David Laws!
Osred
July 1st, 2010 5:21pm Report this commentDaniel,
You are talking cobblers and you know it. The idea that 3 MPs working quietly or otherwise are going to be able to pull together the FCO the MoD and DfID is risible. The MoD will always resent the politicos in the FCO. The FCO still resents an independent DfID/ODA. DfID will jealously guard its independence and huge budget from any FCO input/influence. The MoD will only link up with the FCO when they wish to deal with other Ministries.
Officials will will make mince of 3 PPSs.
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