Former Cabinet Secretary Gus O’Donnell told the Daily Politics last week that “we need to be proud of our Civil Service – it’s impartial, it’s objective, it’s honest”. GOD had been confronted with a bruising column from Thursday’s Telegraph that attacked a mid-ranking Civil Servant who had addressed the weekly meeting of Permanent Secretaries, known in the trade as “Wednesday Morning Colleagues”.

Gus reassured the BBC that he “would be very annoyed about that particular meeting [leaking]” and said although it “happens every week” it “never, ever gets out…”. Really Gus? Never, ever?

Back in April 2010 the FT recounted comments from exactly that meeting. Sue Cameron was leaked a snippet from the “regular Wednesday morning meetings”. She was told that “Sir Gus O’Donnell, the present cabinet secretary, gave his colleagues a solemn undertaking. If Prime Minister Gordon Brown is forced to resign after the election, Sir Gus will not be breaking into tears”. How very impartial.

A few months later Sue Cameron was leaked another poisonous attack. This particular piece recounts how Sir Gus “demanded an explanation [over some matter] from Mr Heywood at the mandarins’ regular Wednesday morning meeting”. Gus came out of this piece frightfully well while Sir Jeremy was left rather bruised. Yes, Gus those meetings never, ever, ever leak do they? What was that about honesty…

Video via @liarpoliticians

Yesterday’s column by Sue Cameron has gone down pretty badly with more radical elements of the government. The Telegraph commentator, known for her pro-civil service outlook, essentially accused the Tories of imagining that the mandarins are all against them. One Whitehall source raged to Guido last night:

“Sue Cameron says “the idea that officials are blocking reform” is “patent nonsense” wondering whether these are “imagined” failings. Yet with no sense of irony at all, she misquotes Jeremy Heywood (who is known to be supportive of giving ministers a greater say in Permanent Secretary appointments) to (falsely) claim he will “block such a move”. Ms Cameron suggests Sir Jeremy will use a “policy of ‘masterly inactivity’” – but wouldn’t that be exactly the sort of blocking or treading water that ministers like Maude have been complaining about?”

They have a point…

UPDATE: Westminster wag adds “It’s unfair to describe her as Jeremy Heywood’s mouthpiece; she takes briefings against him, but only from Sir Gus.”