Sir Kenneth Barnes

Popular and cultured Permanent Secretary at the Department of Employment during a period of tumultuous industrial relations

Sir Kenneth Barnes was Michael Foot's Permanent Secretary at the Department of Employment, and before that his Deputy Secretary, in the Callaghan Government. He next served under Albert Booth and then, in the early years of the Thatcher Government, under Jim Prior and Norman Tebbit until retirement in 1982. A more dissimilar quartet would be hard to find, and Barnes later confided to colleagues that he had never had a more difficult minister than Tebbit. Barnes was one of the outstanding civil servants of his day. Throw any problem at him, and he would quickly analyse it, home in on the essentials, sort out the options for any further action needed, and present a cogent case for his preferred choice. To work with him was always purposeful. It was also fun. The ministers whom he advised enjoyed the great advantage of a clear and ordered statement of the relevant facts, and an unerring assessment of possible courses of action. When, in January 1976, Barnes took over as Permanent Secretary from Sir Conrad Heron, the department was mired in controversies, including the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Amendment) Bill and the Dock Work Regulations Bill. Barnes did his best to steer a steady course through troubled waters, diligently serving Albert Booth after he replaced Foot as Secretary of State in April. In an age when senior civil servants were rather grand and remote, Barnes was exactly the opposite. He was practical, down to earth and approachable, and was referred to as "Ken" by everyone (although not always to his face). Junior officials liked him because he...