Nick Gurr, MOD's Director of Media and Communications, writes:
Normally I like to focus my posts on operational issues. And I will promise to do so again next time. But on this occasion I want to address some of the recent media coverage of civilians in Defence.
There are about 85,000 civilians working for the MOD - over 20,000 fewer than four years ago. They do a range of tasks ranging from supplying the Fleet at sea, to guarding nuclear bases, to testing the frontiers of technology to come up with new and novel equipment to protect our soldiers on operations. But it is undeniable that some - a few thousand - are involved in what are rather pejoratively labelled by some as 'pen-pushing' tasks.
I am one of them, although I do not push many pens nowadays.
What do these so called pen-pushers do? There is no such thing as a typical career. But perhaps by explaining a bit about my own it will help to show how these posts help to support our troops on operations, make sure public money is spent to best effect, and that the public is informed about what is going on in Defence.
My first post in MOD, back in the early 80s, involved managing the travel and subsistence budget in the air systems part of what is now Defence Equipment & Support. All seems very humble and workaday. There was a huge amount of travel in those days, within Europe in support of projects such as Puma, Lynx, Jaguar and the newly acquired Tornado and to the US, on aircraft such as Phantom, Tristar and Chinook - plus of course their avionics and weapon systems. Some of these aircraft had, months before, helped to win the Falklands conflict. My job, as a pen-pusher (or rather bean-counter to use another hackneyed phrase beloved of some commentators) was to ensure that this travel was properly authorised and undertaken by the most economic means. In my small way, I saved tens of thousands of pounds - turning off unnecessary visits and making sure others, that were essential, used the cheapest possible means.
My next job involved working as the link between the Air Staff and Ministers on RAF 'out of area' operations (which back then meant outside Europe). A big part of this was responding to enquiries from members of the public or MPs on issues such as our presence in Cyprus or disaster relief operations in Ethiopia at the time. Keeping the public informed about Defence is another essential 'penpusher' task, responding to questions, trying to help people understand how their tax money is spent and what is done by our Armed Forces in the country's name. Is this activity a waste of time? I would say not. To me it is very important - and no doubt those many thousands of people who send in letters or queries to the MOD agree.
I moved on to a post in Naval support. My job was to make sure that ammunition, fuels and stores for the Royal Navy were provided as efficiently as possible. During the course of that I helped to save millions of pounds - money that could then be spent on more pressing priorities for the Forces. It was followed by a tour in nuclear policy. This involved, among other things, advising Ministers on the level of security that was required for nuclear facilities, transport and materials and ensuring it was put in place. Perhaps the anti-penpusher brigade think this sort of thing does not need to be done. I disagree. The costs of getting it wrong both in financial and human terms would be huge. Many a pen was pushed getting this right. Nuclear security does not happen by itself.
Following that, it was back to working with the Navy in a post that aimed to ensure that future likely levels of funding for the senior Service were matched to the capabilities it would require to do the Nation's work. This meant some stiff prioritisation and rigorous planning to ensure that the money needed for ships, people, accommodation support etc was kept in balance. Of course we could dispense with doing this sort of work and make it up as we go along. But that would end up costing a lot more and would almost certainly lead to Armed Forces that are seriously out of kilter.
My next post was within the Naval Staff, acting as interface between Ministers, the Service and the public on maritime activities in Home Waters and on our support to other government agencies (which included counter-drugs activity in the Caribbean - and before you ask, I never went there once). During this time the Navy and RAF supported a number of successful operations against drug smugglers, which I helped to bring together. We responded to three large public campaigns, which attracted thousands of letters needing reply. One of these, about the move of gunnery training from Portland to Plymouth, led to over a thousand public letters in the space of a few weeks and protracted correspondence with local people lasting over two years. This required lots of penpushing. Of course we could have ignored all of these letters, or sent them a standard reply. Either would have required a lot less penpushing. But it would not have been right in a democracy where the MOD must be publicly accountable.
Next I worked in a post advising on defence commitments in the Western Hemisphere and our overseas territories. This included rebuilding our defence relations with Argentina (no jollies there either). It also involved reviewing the size of the Falklands Garrison. As a result we were able to make substantial reductions, while keeping the capability at the right level, and to remove the military presence from South Georgia completely. Over the years these adjustments have saved tens of millions of pounds.
Since then I have spent much of my time in MOD communications trying to ensure that the public and people in defence are as well informed about defence as possible - both through the media, and direct. This has been punctuated by a spell on a project reviewing logistic support to the armed forces, which lead to savings of many millions, and a spell in the Cabinet Office advising the Prime Minister and others on the future implications for the UK of global issues such as the rise of China, prospects for peace in the Middle East and likely developments in the Balkans. Someone needs to be thinking about what these things might mean. The costs of not doing so could be considerable. And the people who do this work are the so-called 'penpushers'.
I believe all of this is important stuff. But this is not just about me. Many MOD civil servants could tell a similar tale - or a better one, not least those who have spent time in Baghdad, Basrah or Helmand supporting our forces directly.. My whole career has involved working closely with the Armed Forces - indeed that has been one of the real pleasures of the job, and why I left another government department over 25 years ago to come to MOD.
I know that the efforts of civilians in defence are appreciated by our colleagues in uniform. After all, we are here to support them. It was gratifying to see the likes of the Chief of General Staff, Chief of the Air Staff and Commander in Chief Land Forces coming out publicly in support of their civilian colleagues during the recent media criticism, even if their remarks went largely unreported. To quote General Richards:
"Civilian staff play a crucial role in supporting our Armed Forces both at home and abroad - our forces could not do what they do without them."
Over the course of my career I must have been involved in the saving of many millions of pounds, responded to many thousands of public letters or parliamentary questions, and been involved in the formulation and delivery of policy that has helped to keep this country safe. I am proud of that. In their own way, my civilian MOD colleagues make similar contributions - and remember most of them are not pen-pushers like me, but have other jobs such as guarding bases or repairing vehicles.
Why do people do it? Not for the money. Despite what has been written by some, this is not a highly paid profession. Most people in the MOD are paid less than £20,000 a year before tax. The minority that earn more than this typically make less than they would doing an equivalent job outside. Like most people, they pay their own commuting costs and all the other work-related expenses. Many work long hours and have disrupted weekends. This is not a cushy number: if you do not believe me, ask my wife and children.
I do it because I am immensely proud of and passionate about our Armed Forces, who I know to be, person for person, the best in the world. I believe in them and what they do. My job is to tell their story.
If that makes me a pen-pusher in the eyes of some people, that is a price I am very happy to pay.
