Can civil servants be members of political parties?

Hello everyone,

I've been wondering whether civil servants are allowed to be members of mainstream political parties or organisations (i.e. nothing extremist like the BNP), or does this count as infringement of the Civil Service Code? I tried to google this but to no avail.

Thank you.

Hello everyone,

I've been wondering whether civil servants are allowed to be members of mainstream political parties or organisations (i.e. nothing extremist like the BNP), or does this count as infringement of the Civil Service Code? I tried to google this but to no avail.

Thank you.

No.

Civil Servants are ment to be impartial. So being a member of a political party would go against protocol as you could be biased in favour to your political party.

Rules
4.4.1 Departments and agencies must make clear to staff any restrictions on their taking part in political activities. Political activities that may be subject to restriction are defined as follows:
a. at national level: holding, in a party political organisation, office which impinges wholly or mainly on party politics in the field of Parliament or the European Parliament; speaking in public on matters of national political controversy; expressing views on such matters in letters to the Press, or in books, articles or leaflets; being announced publicly as a candidate for Parliament or the European Parliament; and canvassing on behalf of a candidate for Parliament or the European Parliament or on behalf of a political party; and
b. at local level: candidature for, or co-option to, local authorities; holding in a party political organisation, office impinging wholly or mainly on party politics in the local field; speaking in public on matters of local political controversy; expressing views on such matters in letters to the Press, or in books, articles or leaflets; and canvassing on behalf of candidates for election to local authorities or a local political organisation.
4.4.2 Departments and agencies must allow civil servants in industrial and non-office grades the freedom to take part in all political activities. These staff are known as the “politically free” category. The groups of staff to be included in this category are subject to the approval of the Minister for the Civil Service (Servants of the Crown (Parliamentary, European Parliamentary and Northern Ireland Assembly Candidature) Order 1987).
4.4.3 Departments and agencies have discretion to permit other staff to take part in local or national political activities in accordance with paragraphs 4.4.9 and 4.4.10 below. In exercising their discretion, departments and agencies must pay due regard to the guidelines and principles in
Annex A.
4.4.4 In giving permission to participate in political activities to groups of staff or individuals, departments and agencies must make clear to them that the permission can be withdrawn at any time and without prior notice if there is a change in relevant circumstances.
4.4.5 Departments and agencies must give civil servants who are refused permission to take part in political activities, or who have permission to do so withdrawn, a full explanation of the reasons for the decision, and inform them of their right of appeal to the Civil Service Appeal Board (see Section 12.1).
4.4.6 Departments and agencies must reinstate civil servants in the politically free group who resign to stand for election (see paragraph 4.4.20 below) provided they apply within a week of declaration day if they are not elected. If they are elected, they must still be subsequently reinstated if:
a. they cease to be a Member after an absence from the Civil Service of not more than five years; and
b. they apply for reinstatement within three months of ceasing to be a Member.
If the first of these two conditions is not met, reinstatement is at the discretion of the department or agency, but departments and agencies are encouraged to treat applications sympathetically.

4.4.7 Departments and agencies have discretion to reinstate civil servants who are not in the politically free category following resignation to stand for election to Parliament or the European Parliament. Discretion to reinstate should normally be exercised only where it is possible to post staff, at least initially, to non-sensitive areas.
4.4.8 Where a civil servant is reinstated, the period of the break will not count for pay or superannuation purposes. Salary will not be payable during the break.
Standards of conduct to be reflected in staff handbooks
4.4.9 Civil servants in “the politically restricted” category i.e. members of the Senior Civil Service and civil servants at levels immediately below the Senior Civil Service, plus members of the Fast Stream Development Programme (Administrative and European), must not take part in national political activities (paragraph 4.4.1a). They must seek permission to take part in local political activities (paragraph 4.4.1b) and must comply with any conditions laid down by their department or agency.
4.4.10 Civil servants outside the “politically restricted” category (paragraph 4.4.9) and the “politically free” category (paragraph 4.4.2) must seek permission to take part in national or local political activities (paragraph 4.4.1) unless they are in a grade or area that has already been given permission to do so by means of a specific mandate from the department or agency. Where they already have permission under such a mandate, they must notify the department or agency of intended political activities prior to taking them up. They must comply with any conditions laid down by their department or agency.
4.4.11 Civil servants must not take part in any political activity when on duty, or in uniform, or on official premises.
4.4.12 Civil servants must not attend in their official capacity outside conferences or functions convened by or under the aegis of a party political organisation.
4.4.13 Civil servants not in the politically free category must not allow the expression of their personal political views to constitute so strong and so comprehensive a commitment to one political party as to inhibit or appear to inhibit loyal and effective service to Ministers of another party. They must take particular care to express comment with moderation, particularly about matters for which their own Ministers are responsible; to avoid comment altogether about matters of controversy affecting the responsibility of their own Ministers, and to avoid personal attacks.
4.4.14 They must also take every care to avoid any embarrassment to Ministers or to their department or agency which could result, inadvertently or not, from bringing themselves prominently to public notice, as civil servants, in party political controversy.
4.4.15 Civil servants who are not in the politically free category and who have not been given permission to engage in political activities must retain at all times a proper reticence in matters of political controversy so that their impartiality is beyond question.
4.4.16 Civil servants do not need permission to take part in activities organised by their trade unions. Elected trade union representatives may comment on Government policy when representing the legitimate interests of their members, but in doing so they must make it clear that they are expressing views as representatives of the union and not as civil servants.
4.4.17 Civil servants given permission to take part in local political activities must tell their department or agency if they are elected to a local authority.

4.4.18 Civil servants given permission to take part in political activities must give up those activities if they are moved to a post where permission cannot be granted.
4.4.19 Civil servants are disqualified from election to Parliament (House of Commons Disqualification Act 1975) and from election to the European Parliament (European Parliamentary Elections Act 1978). They must therefore resign from the Civil Service before standing for election in accordance with paragraphs 4.4.20 and 4.4.21.
4.4.20 Civil servants in the politically free group are not required to resign on adoption as a prospective candidate. But to prevent their election being held to be void they must submit their resignation before they give their consent to nomination in accordance with the Parliamentary Election Rules.
4.4.21 All other civil servants, including civil servants on secondment to outside organisations, must comply with the provisions of the Servants of the Crown (Parliamentary, European Parliamentary and Northern Ireland Assembly Candidature) Order 1987. They must not issue an address to electors or in any other manner publicly announce themselves or allow themselves to be publicly announced as candidates or prospective candidates for election to Parliament or the European Parliament; and they must resign from the Civil Service on their formal adoption as a Parliamentary candidate or prospective candidate in accordance with the procedures of the political party concerned. Civil servants not in the politically free group who are candidates for election must complete their last day of service before their adoption papers are completed.

ANNEX A: GUIDELINES AND PRINCIPLES ON PARTICIPATION IN POLITICAL ACTIVITIES
1. In exercising discretion over participation by civil servants in the political activities described in paragraph 4.4.3, departments and agencies must pay regard to the following principles:
a. permission should normally only be refused where civil servants are employed in sensitive areas in which the impartiality of the Civil Service is most at risk. Permission may be granted to individuals or groups to undertake either only national or only local political activities;
b. permission should normally be granted in all other circumstances, provided departments and agencies are satisfied that the civil servants concerned are aware of the need to observe the principles set out in paragraphs 4.4.10 and 4.4.11 and the other rules governing the conduct of civil servants, including those relating to the use of official information.
2. In applying these principles, departments and agencies should regard posts as being “sensitive” if:
a. they are closely engaged in policy assistance to Ministers (or to non-departmental Crown bodies) such as tendering advice or executing immediate Ministerial directives;
b. they are in the private offices of Ministers or senior officials or in areas which are politically sensitive or subject to national security;
c. they require the postholder regularly to speak for the Government or their department or agency in dealings with commercial undertakings, pressure groups, local government, public authorities or any other bodies;
d. the postholder represents the Government in dealing with overseas governments; or
e. the postholder is involved in a significant amount of face to face contact with members of the public who may be expected to know of the postholder’s political activities and makes, or may appear to make, decisions directly affecting them personally.
3. Departments and agencies are advised to apply as helpful a postings policy as possible to staff who wish to become or remain politically active, provided the staff concerned understand that this may have the effect of limiting their range of experience; and to identify blocks of posts in which staff may be granted advance permission to take part in the political activities described in paragraph 4.4.1.
4. Where a civil servant is adopted as a parliamentary candidate and is therefore required to resign, departments and agencies may, at their discretion, make an ex-gratia payment equivalent to the period of notice to be given to the individual if the adoption process does not reasonably allow for the individual to give full notice.

No.

Civil Servants are ment to be impartial. So being a member of a political party would go against protocol as you could be biased in favour to your political party.

Being a party member is fine. There are restrictions on their political activities depending on what grade they are at (some lower grades are politically free, the rest are politically restricted), these restrictions are things like standing for election, canvassing etc.