This Palgrave Policy Essential maps and assesses key changes in the Whitehall model over the
last two decades. It argues that the traditional Whitehall model is being replaced by a system
of 'New Political Governance' (NPG) centred on politicised campaigning the growth of political
advisory staff relative to the permanent civil service the personalisation of bureaucratic
appointments and the creation of a government machine that is 'promiscuously partisan'. It
provides a snapshot of the institutional changes that are unfolding at a critical moment as
Whitehall prepares to support Ministers in carrying out the Brexit process while addressing a
series of long-term structural challenges from the demographic pressures of the ageing society
to the impact of climate change. Austerity since 2010 has had a further transformative effect
on Whitehall with drastic reductions in the civil service workforce the restructuring of
government agencies and a reconfiguration of the traditional roles and responsibilities of the
permanent civil service.
