FDA rejects Reform’s “nonsensical” claims on EDI spending
The FDA has rejected claims made by Reform UK that £7 billion could be saved by cutting Equality Diversity and Inclusion initiatives, despite the most recent Cabinet Office review showing civil service EDI spending was around £27 million.
During an appearance on Lewis Goodall’s LBC show, FDA General Secretary Dave Penman said:
“It’s nonsensical. It’s about a third of the entire pay bill of the civil service… In reality it’s tens of millions of pounds. This is about making sure the civil service is a fair employer, that it treats people with respect and crucially that it looks like the people that the government serve.”
He continued:
“I think the reality will soon hit Reform that this isn’t the U.S. administration, that of course there may be ideas that you can do things more efficiently, but at the end of the day, a bit like the spending round for the UK central government, this is about priorities.
“You can cut spending, but that means you’re going to cut services and those are political choices that you’re then held accountable for, rather than some idea there’s this kind of mythical billions to be saved just by doing things differently.”
Penman also appeared on Alex Phillips’ TalkTV programme to discuss the civil service’s efficiency, telling the presenter:
“How the administration and the government has been run for the last ten years has been chaotic. It’s wholly inefficient if you change policy direction every time you change a minister… So what we need is stability. We need a plan that matches commitments to resources. That way you will get a slimmed down, more efficient and more effective civil service.”
Latest news
-
Carers Week 2025 – launching our Carers’ Survey
To mark Carers Week 2025 (9-15 June), the FDA is launching a survey of carers in the civil service to find out what progress has been made since our 2021 report, and what still needs to be done.
-
FDA delegation attends TUC Disabled Workers’ Conference 2025
Last week, an FDA delegation attended the TUC’s 2025 Disabled Workers’ Conference, held at the Bournemouth International Centre. The conference brings together delegates from across the union movement to discuss, debate and decide motions on issues affecting disabled workers.
-
FDA delegation attends TUC Black Workers’ Conference 2025
In April, the 2025 TUC Black Workers’ Conference took place at Congress House in London, attended by a delegation of FDA members. The conference is part of a series of equality conferences held by the TUC, which also includes the Women’s Conference, Disabled Workers’ Conference, and LGBT+ Conference.