Baroness Hayman
Main Page: Baroness Hayman (Crossbench - Life peer)Department Debates - View all Baroness Hayman's debates with the Cabinet Office
(1 year, 10 months ago)
Lords ChamberI entirely agree with my noble friend. The balance between free speech and Civil Service impartiality is exactly what we are trying to strike.
My Lords, I am slightly confused. I am no expert on this issue, but am I right in interpreting the noble Baroness as saying that the guidelines in the Library apply only to cross-departmental diversity networks, that diversity network events in a single department are not subject to these guidelines and that a department could decide not to follow them for its internal activities?
The guidelines apply to cross-government diversity networks and they should follow the guidelines, although, obviously, there can be local interpretation.