AQW 40066/22-27

Mr Jon Burrows
Ulster Unionist Party
North Antrim

Tabled Date: 06/02/2026
Answered On Date: 20/02/2026
Priority Written: No

Question:
To ask the Minister of Finance to detail (i) the number of times the Head of the Civil Service has had an annual performance review; and (ii) who these reviews were conducted by.

Answer:

Under long standing arrangements, the Civil Service Performance Management policy applies to all staff, including the SCS, but it does not prescribe a formal appraisal process for the Head of the Civil Service (HOCS). The HOCS role is structurally unique and does not sit within an organisational line management or reporting chain. Accordingly, there is no formal TEO appraisal line under the corporate process.

The Performance Management policy is currently under review and part of that review will include consideration of performance management arrangements for the HOCS role that safeguards the political impartiality of the Civil Service.