The Ministry of Defence is expecting to be more than a quarter of the way to meeting its goal to cut 10% of its civilian workforce by the end of the financial year, a minister has said.
Veterans minister Al Carns said the MoD is forecasted to have 55,430 full-time equivalent civilian staff as of 1 April – down from 56,800 on 1 October.
Permanent secretary David Williams revealed plans to shrink the MoD’s civil service workforce by around 10% in November. Citing the 56,800 figure, he told parliament’s Defence Committee that the department expected to have at least 5,000 fewer full-time equivalent staff by the end of the decade.
If the MoD meets the forecast shared by Carns, it will have reduced its civil service headcount by around 1,370 jobs in six months.
The total figure includes civilians within MoD main top-level budgets, executive agencies and the Royal Fleet Auxiliary, but excludes locally engaged civilians, Carns said.
The forecast is “informed by assumptions based on historic outflow and current recruitment plans”, the minister said.
“This is an indicative number used for planning purposes, and not a target. This figure represents only one part of MoD's workforce, and the actual figure may be impacted by changes to the size and shape of other workforce types, including military staff, reservists and contractors,” he added.
Carns was responding to a parliamentary question from Labour MP Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi, who asked how many full-time equivalent employees are employed by the MoD and its non-departmental public bodies, and what the numbers are estimated to be in 12 months’ time.
“We are working to ensure our workforce remains affordable and targeted at delivering the department’s priorities and are committed to achieving a more efficient and effective civil service,” he added.
Williams’s revelation of the job-cuts plan came just after defence secretary John Healey announced a series of reforms – including accelerating the decommissioning of five Royal Navy ships, 31 helicopters and 46 outdated drones to save up to £500m – that he said were driven by the "billion-pound black holes in defence plans" that the new government inherited.
Healey said further reforms would see MoD perm sec Williams "lead a leaner department, with more policy muscle and influence".
The announcements came ahead of the Strategic Defence Review, which was launched last July and will not report until later this year.
Responding to a separate question on what assessment had been made of the potential impact of the planned job cuts on military capability, defence minister Maria Eagle said the MoD was “reviewing the civil service workforce required to deliver Defence’s strategy, and to align with the chancellor’s announcement on public spending and the recent budget”.
“We are committed to having an agile and sustainable workforce with the right skills, whilst maximising value for the taxpayer,” she said.
“The Strategic Defence Review will ensure our people are at the heart of Defence’s plans, supporting the security, economic growth and prosperity of the UK.
“Over time the civil service workforce will be smaller, but also a team that is better able to deliver Defence outputs efficiently and effectively.”