Asked by: George Howarth (Labour - Knowsley)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the complaints procedure is for members of the public who have a complaint that a civil servant is in breach of the Civil Service Code; what the timeline is for the relevant Department to provide a substantive response to such a complaint; what process applies if the complaint relates to a civil servant's work at a Department other than the Department in which they are employed; whether that procedure differs for complaints against (a) former and retired civil servants and (b) permanent secretaries or other heads of Departments; how many complaints about breaches of the Civil Service Code by civil servants have been recorded by his Department in each of the last six years; and what the outcomes of those complaints were.
Answered by David Lidington
The Civil Service is committed to providing a high quality service to everyone it deals with and all complaints are treated seriously.
All civil servants are required to adhere to Civil Service Code values - integrity, honesty, objectivity and impartiality. If a member of the public wishes to complain about a civil servant, they should in the first instance contact the Department or Agency where the civil servant is employed. Each Department or Agency has its own complaints procedure that can be found on GOV.UK.