Do outsiders in government really work?

Mace | 4th June 2026 | Policy & Think Tanks, Politics
Professor Nada Kakabadese
Professor Nada Kakabadese

As politicians call for more external appointments in Whitehall, Professor Nada Kakabadse argues that the real challenge lies not in recruitment, but governance.

In the space of a single week earlier this year, Tony Blair argued that government departments should be led by ministers recruited from outside of Parliament. Reform UK unveiled plans to give ministers greater powers over senior civil service appointments. At the same time, the government continued advancing its own reform agenda, including efforts to bring more outside expertise into Whitehall.

Different parties and politics. And yet on this point they seem to be remarkably aligned: Britain needs more people from beyond Westminster and Whitehall to help run the state. They could well be right.

What is more striking, however, is how little of the current debate engages with the evidence accumulated over decades of trying exactly this.

Britain has been attempting to bring more external expertise into government since the Fulton Report in 1968. More than half a century later, the Institute for Government still concludes that Whitehall struggles to attract, retain and properly use specialist knowledge from wider society.

The difficulty is that politicians often talk about ‘bringing in outsiders’ as though it means one thing. It doesn’t. Recruiting technical specialists into the civil service, appointing an external leader to run a major government function, and bringing ministers into government from outside Parliament are entirely different propositions. Each action raises …

Subscribe to The Mace

Join the member community shaping British politics and stay ahead of what's really happening in the world of politics and public affairs, with expert analysis, breaking news, and insider insights from Westminster and Brussels. The Mace is the leading news source and resource for the government affairs industry, offering required reading and lobby intelligence for professionals.

To see what you are missing out on by not subscribing to The Mace, click here to download our full membership info-pack. This includes having no paywall on op-ed content or profiles/interviews, allowing professional profiles to be read with maximum impact and visibility by government, special advisers, MPs, peers, civil servants, and policy and political decision-makers.



What the Mandelson files reveal about Global Counsel

Lucy Carrier-Pilkington | June 4, 2026

Lord Peter Mandelson has found himself in the headlines again, as the 'Mandelson Files' reveal the true extent of his involvement in the Labour Party.

Wigan Man will decide the next Prime Minister

Mace | June 1, 2026

Andy Burnham may struggle to win the Makerfield by-election if ‘Wigan Man’ emerges as the new median voter whom parties must attract to win the next election, says

Time’s up on late payments: How large companies are harming UK’s smaller businesses

Mace | May 24, 2026

Graeme Donnelly, CEO and founder of 1st Formations, explains why the King’s Speech’s proposed crackdown on late payments will help the SME economy.

Holiday tax will ruin the English Summer

Mace | May 23, 2026

Despite the new 5% VAT tax break for holiday attractions, tourism trade body leaders are speaking out about how government policies may not help the sector.

The Strategist: Dominic Raab, former deputy prime minister joins Kreab London as senior adviser

Mace | May 22, 2026

The former deputy prime minister and foreign secretary will be advising Kreab global clients on defence and intelligence-related issues, as well as international geopolitics and Westminster issues.

The Downing Street revolving door undermines democracy and weakens policymaking

Lucy Carrier-Pilkington | May 21, 2026

With the battle for Labour's leadership far from over, Lucy Carrier-Pilkington analyses what a change in leader could mean for policymaking.

Leader in UK Public Affairs: Jessica Lennard, Chief Strategy Officer, Competition and Markets Authority – “I’m an obsessive starter finisher”

Mace | May 20, 2026

After leaving Linklaters, Jessica joined the Conservative Party’s Shadow Energy and Climate Change team in 2008 just as energy security and climate policy were rising rapidly up the

Time to pay-up: why the government is right to crack-down on late payments by large companies

Mace | May 20, 2026

New legislation in the King's Speech to clamp down on large companies paying small suppliers late is long overdue, says Sarah Stone

The Renters’ Right Act will bury the UK housing market, says leading UK developer Kamal Pankhania

Mace | May 19, 2026

With the UK housing market already under economic pressure, this is not the right time to introduce new rental reforms that will damage investor confidence, says Kamal Pankhania,

Reflections on starting up a new centre-right think tank by Jonathan Brown

Jonathan Brown | May 19, 2026

Jonathan Brown, CEO of Centre for a Better Britain, explains why Westminster needed a new think tank for a new political era