I wanted to write personally to everyone in the Civil Service, as we take forward the Plan for Change.

From my time as Director of Public Prosecutions, I know first-hand just how fortunate this country is to have a Civil Service that is admired across the world. I saw it every day; I depended on it every day; I was proud to be a part of it every day. And from all I have seen during my first five months as Prime Minister, my appreciation of your service to this country has only grown.

It is not just because I know how hard you work. It is because I understand something of what drives your dedication and professionalism. You have this strong sense of public service in everything you do. For you, it’s not just a job. You want to change the country and make Britain a better place. Put simply, I believe we all share the same goal – we have all followed a path towards public service to serve our country.

But if we are honest, we all know that there are far too many obstacles in your way. Too often, needless bureaucratic impediments, silos, processes about processes, all impede your ability – and therefore also my ability – to deliver for the people we are here to serve. And from the conversations that I have had with many of you over the past five months, I know these barriers frustrate you every bit as much as they frustrate me.

So we have got to be bold in pressing through reform and delivering government in a better way. I am not afraid to speak frankly about that – or indeed to take determined and decisive action to change it. We all want a government machine that delivers. And where it doesn’t, we must act.

I also know that for too long you’ve lacked the political direction to deliver the change that you joined the Civil Service to deliver. In recent years you have had to contend with crises and political instability that have led to a short-term chopping and changing of priorities. That is an impossible situation for anyone to work in – being expected to chase after one goal today, and an entirely different goal tomorrow. So my pledge to you is that my Cabinet will provide the leadership you need to deliver. We will give you clear direction, take on the vested interests in Westminster and beyond, and put an end to the chopping and changing of political priorities.

That is what the Plan for Change is all about. I resolved to come into government with clear missions – and now we have set out the milestones that illustrate what government is going to do to change the lives of people across the country, milestones that we want to be measured by. And at the same time, these milestones will be used to drive through change in the way government delivers. From breaking down silos across government and our public services, to harnessing the extraordinary potential of technology, to working in partnership with business, charities, campaigners, unions and investors, it represents a rewiring of the British State in which everyone pulls in the same direction, all focused on taking our country forward.

So I do have one further ask of you. Where you see things that hold you back from delivering the change we need to deliver, I want you to feel emboldened to challenge them. Whether it is outdated processes, room for improvement, sluggishness, or wrongheadedness, I want you to take them on. Change will not be delivered if we are content or if we worry about upsetting the apple cart. We must all be restless and relentless in pursuit of building the better country we all want – and I want you to feel that every day you can deliver the change the country needs.

Yes, the targets we have set are hard to hit. And yes, these are big changes to the way government works and it won’t all just happen overnight or proceed seamlessly. But we can do this.

For example, just look at the response to the violent disorder in the summer. Back then, the immediacy and urgency of the situation meant I asked a lot of you. It meant that we needed to work quickly and in an unprecedented way – breaking down silos, pulling together agencies beyond Whitehall, rapidly speeding up the pace of change. Together, our actions quickly reestablished safety on our streets, secured swift justice against the perpetrators and began to rebuild the communities that were affected.

The challenge now is to apply that mindset to everything. Because every step closer to the milestones set out in The Plan for Change, transforms someone’s life. Every step closer rebuilds Britain. Every step closer restores people’s trust in the ability of politics and government to deliver. I know it won’t be easy, but together we can fulfil the mandate of this new government, improving the lives of working people and strengthening our country with a decade of national renewal.

Thank you again for your service.

Sir Keir Starmer’