Minister's fear on pace of reform - The Guardian 6th November 2007

A cabinet minister has claimed the government will lose its election-winning coalition if it puts the brake on a bold public sector reform programme that sometimes challenges public sector staff. The remarks came from James Purnell, the culture secretary, in a speech at a Progress conference. "At times reform can be very uncomfortable," he said. "The interests of the staff and the interests of the citizens are not always identical. We respect and value the staff but we side with the citizens. That is a harder choice than it sounds; it can bring down criticism on our heads, sometimes from our own natural supporters. That is what being in government is like.

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