Cabinet minister Francis Maude has announced plans to transform the body that administers the civil service pension scheme into a mutual arrangement.
The employees belonging to the My Civil Service Pension would join up with a private sector partner to create an employee-owned business.
The Cabinet Office describes the move as the first major ‘spin out’ of a central government service giving employees the opportunity to take a stake in the business.
Maude said: “We are looking for more innovative ways to structure services. We know that employees who have a stake in their business, or take ownership of it completely, have more power and motivation to improve the service they run.
“They can also benefit from partnerships with private or voluntary sector organisations which can bring in capital and expertise.
For the private sector, which can no longer expect the generous margins of the past, tapping the talent of frontline staff to improve efficiency will be a priority. The state too can keep a stake so that taxpayers benefit from the rising value of an improved service.”
Phil Bartlett, chief executive officer of My Civil Service Pension, said: “By taking the opportunity to mutualise we can better acknowledge our people and their expertise, and access valuable additional resources and expertise in the private sector.
“This new and innovative structure will give us the agility to exploit opportunities in the changing pension landscape and grow our business, and the taxpayer will benefit from the increased value of an improved and more efficient service.”
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