Decision

Summary of business appointment applications - Dame Louise Casey

Updated 23 October 2018

Dame Louise Casey left her position at Director General at the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) in July 2017.

1. Trustee, The Prince of Wales’s Charitable Foundation

Dame Louise sought the Committee’s advice on taking up an appointment as a Trustee at The Prince of Wales’s Charitable Foundation.

The letter containing the Committee’s consideration and the conditions imposed on the appointment was sent in June 2018.

2. Advisory Board Member, KPMG

Dame Louise sought the Committee’s advice about being a paid Member of KPMG’s Advisory Board on Inclusion.

The Committee noted Dame Louise had no official dealings with KPMG or its competitors over her last two years in Crown service and was not involved in policy or funding decisions that may have affected it. It also took into account that Dame Louise’s former department confirmed that while she had no access to privileged or sensitive information relating to integration policy that could be exploited to give commercial advantage to KPMG, it is likely she would have had access to wider information relating to the work of the department and Government.

The Committee considered the time which has passed (over six months) since Dame Louise left Government, would reduce the potential for any information to which she had access to offering KPMG an unfair advantage. However, the Committee adopted the department’s suggestion that to mitigate any risk, a condition that she should not advise KPMG or its clients on matters relating to departmental work, should be imposed. The Committee has made explicit that this includes providing advice on the terms of a bid or contract relating directly to the work of the department. The Committee has also imposed a lobbying ban, which will mitigate the risk of KPMG benefiting from contacts Dame Louise gained while in office.

The Prime Minister accepted the Committee’s advice that this appointment be subject to the following conditions:

• she should not draw on (disclose or use for the benefit of herself or the organisation to which this advice refers) privileged information available to her from her time in Crown service;
• for two years from her last day of service she should not provide advice to KPMG or its clients on matters relating to the work of the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government, including the terms of bids or contracts relating directly to the work of the department; and
• for two years from her last day in service, she should not become personally involved in lobbying the UK Government on behalf of KPMG or its clients, or make use, directly or indirectly, of her contacts in Government and/or Crown service to influence policy or secure business on their behalf.

The letter containing the Committee’s advice was sent in February 2018.

3. Consultant, Crest Advisory (UK) Ltd

Dame Louise sought the Committee’s advice about becoming a consultant to Crest Advisory (UK) Ltd, a small consultancy company operating in the police, criminal justice and local government field. She would take up projects to assist Crest on an “as and when” basis and not more than a few days per month. This would be a paid role. Dame Louise stated that the appointment is not likely to include any contact or dealings with Government.

The Committee noted that there is a connection between the appointment and the sector Dame Louise worked in while in Government. However, in the circumstances of this case, the Committee concluded that the risks associated with the appointment are low and appropriate mitigations can be put in place.

There is no objective reason for the appointment to be perceived as a reward for decisions made while in office. Dame Louise had no official dealings with Crest or its competitors over her last two years in service and her work was generic to a wider sector than that covered by their practice.

The Committee also considered the risk of unfair advantage presented by this application. Importantly, the Department has confirmed that while Dame Louise knows how both central and local government work, she has no access to commercially sensitive information that could give Crest a competitive advantage. Given that Dame Louise said that Crest will draw on her experience in assisting organisations review their work or stocktake their activity, it seems likely that they intend to draw on her generic experience and the Committee sees no impropriety in this respect. DCLG noted that Dame Louise’s network of personal contacts across many sectors existed before she worked for the department and considers the risk of these being used to secure some form of undue competitive advantage for Crest is low.

The Prime Minister accepted the Committee’s advice that this appointment be subject to the following conditions:

• she should not draw on (disclose or use for the benefit of herself or the organisation to which this advice refers) privileged information available to her from her time in Crown service;
• for two years from her last day of service she should not provide advice to any company or organisation on the terms of, or with regard to the subject matter of, a bid or contract relating directly to the work of DCLG; and
• for two years from her last day in service, she should not become personally involved in lobbying the UK Government on behalf of Crest Advisory (UK) Ltd or its clients, or make use, directly or indirectly, of her contacts in Government and/or Crown service to influence policy or secure business on their behalf.

The letter containing the Committee’s advice was sent in November 2017 and the appointment was taken up in January 2018.

4. Executive Director, Institute for Global Homelessness, De Paul University, Chicago

5. Visiting Professor, The Policy Institute, Kings College London

The Committee was asked to consider an application from Dame Louise Casey, to work for five days a month as an Executive Director at the Institute for Global Homelessness, De Paul University, Chicago. She would work specifically to a diagnostic package that both assesses the prevalence of street homelessness in Chicago and delivers a strategy to tackle it. This is a paid position.

Dame Louise would also take up a paid appointment as a visiting Professor at The Policy Institute at Kings College London. She was approached by the Institute to help them deliver a coherent academic offer on social policy.

When considering this application, the Committee took into account that DCLG had no reservations about the proposed appointments. The Department confirmed that Dame Louise had no previous official dealings with either prospective employer.

The Prime Minister accepted the Committee’s advice that this appointment be subject to the following conditions:

• She should not draw on (disclose or use for the benefit of herself or the organisation to which this advice refers) privileged information available to her from her time in Crown service; and
• For two years from her last day in service, Dame Louise should not become personally involved in lobbying the UK Government on behalf of De Paul University or Kings College London or make use, directly or indirectly, of her contacts in Government and/or Crown service to influence policy or secure funding on their behalf.

The letter containing the Committee’s advice was sent in July 2017 and the appointments have since been taken up.