National security adviser Sir Peter Ricketts has defended the principle that his job should be held by a civil servant rather than a minister for national security, both in a CSW interview and in an appearance before Parliament’s Joint Committee on the National Security Strategy.

Speaking to CSW earlier this month, Ricketts said: “I think it works well to have a civil servant who is the coordinator and facilitator and ensures that ministers can meet around the National Security Council table and come up with a collective view.”

He added that appointing a minister would “inevitably create boundary issues with the foreign and defence and development secretaries”.

At the committee last week, Ricketts faced strong questioning from peers who asked why his role isn’t held by a minister. In particular, Lord Foulkes told Ricketts that “you have a very low opinion of ministers”.

In response, Ricketts said he had a very high opinion of ministers and that “there would be a question of who reports to the House of Commons on an issue that is national security but which actually covers foreign affairs. I can see a lot of potential friction.”

Ricketts also defended the appointment of a national security adviser. Previously security and intelligence work wasn’t undertaken “in such a joined-up and coordinated way,” he said. “Instead of having different groups dealing with different parts of the problem, they’re all handled in a systematic weekly process.”

Read an interview with Sir Peter Ricketts here

Click here to see all news and features from Civil Service World

Written by csw