Apermanent secretary is the most seniorcivil servant of a department orministry charged with running the department or ministry's day-to-day activities. Permanent secretaries are the non-political civil servicechief executives of government departments or ministries, who generally hold their position for a number of years (thus "permanent") at a ministry as distinct from the changing political secretaries of state to whom they report and provide advice.[1] The role originated in thecivil service of the United Kingdom and has been adopted in severalCommonwealth countries as well as other countries influenced by theWestminster system.
In Australia, the position is called the "department secretary", “secretary of the department”, or “director-general of the department” in some states and territories.
In Canada, the senior civil service position is a "deputy minister", who within a government ministry or department is outranked only by aminister of the Crown. Federally, deputy ministers are appointed by the prime minister on the advice of thesecretary to the cabinet (the Head of Canada's civil service). They are considered to hold equal rank with parliamentary secretaries or assistants – legislators appointed to assist ministers in their duties – and are entitled to several privileges, including the use ofdiplomatic passports.
In Germany, the equivalent office is called "Staatssekretär" (state secretary). It is not to be confused with the "parliamentary state secretary", who serves as deputy to a minister, often with a more specialised field of responsibilities. The parliamentary state secretary is always a political position, and not part of the civil service.
InHong Kong, heads of policy bureaux, secretaries, were filled bycivil servants until their titles were changed to permanent secretaries in 2002, whenpolitical appointees filled the positions of secretaries under the secondTung Chee Hwa government. Since August 2005, theOffice of the Chief Executive also has a permanent secretary. His ranking is, however, lower than most other permanent secretaries according to the pay scale.
In India, the equivalent position is called "secretary to the Government of India" and is the highest-ranking permanent civil servant in a department. With the exception of departments within theMinistry of External Affairs, which are headed byIndian Foreign Service officers, all Secretaries to the Government of India are drawn from cadres of theIndian Administrative Service.
These officers directly report toMinisters of the Union within their respective ministry, and oversee all day-to-day operations of their departments. Within the civil service, they are outranked only by theCabinet Secretary of India or thePrincipal Secretary to the Prime Minister of India when the latter is granted the rank of Cabinet Secretary (as has been the case under Prime MinisterNarendra Modi).
In Indonesia, the equivalent position is called secretary-general (Indonesian:Sekretaris Jenderal, abbreviatedSekjen), one of the highest-ranking permanent civil servants in a ministry, leads the General Secretariat (Indonesian:Sekretariat Jenderal, abbreviatedSetjen). These officers directly report to the minister in their respective ministry or to the respective leader in state bodies.
In theCivil service of the Republic of Ireland, the position of secretary general of aDepartment of State is almost identical to that of apermanent secretary in the BritishCivil Service, except that the position is not permanent, having a term of seven years. This limit was introduced by the Strategic Management Initiative of the mid-1990s, when also the title was changed from "secretary". Irish government departments may also have a "second secretary", which is equivalent to the second permanent secretary grade in the British civil service.
In Israel, the equivalent office is calledמנהל כללי, a term which is ordinarily translated as "chief executive officer. The official English translation for the government post is "director general". Directors general of ministries are nominated by the relevant minister and confirmed by the Government, and serve at the pleasure of the ministers above them.
In Italy, the highest civil service official in a ministry or department is either asegretario generale (secretary-general) or adirettore generale (director-general), while the position ofsottosegretario di stato (under-secretary of state) is a political one and ranks below theministro segretario di stato (minister-secretary of state, the head of a ministry or department) or thevice ministro (deputy-minister), both political posts as well.
The Japanese equivalents are the administrative vice-ministers.
In Kenya, the equivalent office is called "principal secretary", which is a position established by theConstitution of Kenya as an office in the country'scivil service. Principal secretaries serve as the administrative head of a state department within a ministry and are responsible for the department's daily affairs. A principal secretary is nominated by thepresident of Kenya from a group of persons recommended by the country'sPublic Service Commission and upon approval by the country'sNational Assembly, is appointed to office by the president.
The Constitution of Kenya grants the president the power to re-assign a principal secretary.
In Malaysia, a permanent secretary refers to the administrative head of a ministry in the states ofSabah andSarawak. The administrative head of a federal ministry is called "secretary general".
On the island state ofMauritius, which is a former British colony, there are a number of permanent secretaries who report to theSecretary to Cabinet and Head of the Civil Service. In the prime minister's office there are 2 permanent secretaries, assisted by 3 deputy permanent secretaries as well as 4 assistant permanent secretaries.[2] There are at least 147 Assistant Permanent Secretaries, 86 Deputy Permanent Secretaries and 37 Permanent Secretaries in the various Ministries of theGovernment of Mauritius.[3][4]
In New Zealand, the civil service head of a ministry is ordinarily entitled "chief executive", although there are still some positions which carry the title of secretary (secretary of education, secretary of justice, secretary of transport). In some cases (such as theNew Zealand Security Intelligence Service, Ministry for Primary Industries, Department of Conservation, Ministry of Health) the title is "director-general". Organisations with enforcement powers, such as theInland Revenue Department and theNew Zealand Police, are headed by commissioners. The New Zealand Customs Service is headed by the comptroller of customs. Civil service heads are officially employed by theState Services Commission, further separating them from the politicians who hold ministerial positions.
The Permanent Under-Secretary of State of theMinistry of Foreign Affairs in Norway is the ministry's top civil servant.
In Pakistan, the equivalent position is called Federal Secretary and is the highest ranking permanent civil servant in a federal ministry.
In Singapore, permanent secretaries have to retire after a ten-year term even if they are younger than the official retirement age of 62. This was introduced in 2000 as part of the Public Service Leadership scheme, to provide opportunities for younger officers from the Administrative Service – the elite arm of theCivil Service – to rise up the ranks.
InSri Lanka, a "secretary to the ministry" (also known as ministry secretary or simply secretary) is the administrative head of a ministry and is appointed by thepresident of Sri Lanka. The post of permanent secretary was created under theCeylon (Constitution and Independence) Orders in Council 1947 when Ceylon gained self-rule fromBritain in 1948. Permanent secretaries were commonly appointed from theCeylon Civil Service, with a few exceptions such as the permanent secretary to the ministry of justice which would be an officer of the judicial service.Anandatissa de Alwis was the first person from the private sector to be appointed as permanent secretary. TheSri Lankan Constitution of 1972, changed the title to secretary to the ministry. Traditionally if the appointee is a serving member of thepublic service, he or she would leave the service for the duration they hold the appointment. In the recent past it has been common for ministry secretaries to be appointed from outside the public service, with some on political grounds at the discretion of the president on the advice of the minister in charge.[5] Major GeneralSanjeewa Munasinghe became the first serving military officer from the regular force to be appointed a ministry secretary in 2020.[6]
The titlepermanent secretary, or, in some departmentspermanent under-secretary of state, is the most seniorcivil servant of a government department in the United Kingdom. The role originated in 1830, and has been adopted in severalCommonwealth countries as well as other countries influenced by theWestminster system.[7][8]