Thinking Paper # 216: How much importance should we place on a desk?

Abstract

Desks.  We've all probably sat at one waiting for a rather arbitrary time to appear on the clock before we can go home. Some of you may even own one.  Thatcher’s Britain lives on.  But what does a desk mean these days in terms of political power in Whitehall?  This is really important stuff people, pay attention.

The Bob and Jeremy show

Sir Bob Kerslake, that new lad in Whitehall who gets to run the civil service has bagged himself a rather nice desk in a room next to Sir Jeremy, that floating mandarin that secretly runs the country.  Sir Bob said "I'm right chuffed with my new desk". 

This is important you see because it means that Bob and Jezza are now equidistant from the Prime Minister's desk, that red fellow who reads things off of word documents. 

Elsewhere, there is a scrap over a desk on the fourth floor of No10 between one Sir Kim "the fat" Darroch and some other fellow.  We forget who.  He's very important though. 

Concluding comments

Right then, where were we?  Desks.  Yes, anyone who's anyone has a desk in Whitehall and preferably it should be near that fellow who reads stuff he's told to depending on what the latest focus groups have said.

Thanks for reading.