Petty-minded

The Times reports on the penalty for saying things that displease Ministers:

Theresa May has forced one of the world’s biggest consultancy companies to withdraw from Whitehall contract bids for six months after one of its staff wrote a memo detailing Brexit strains at the heart of government.

A two-page assessment, leaked to The Times last month, reported that civil servants were struggling to cope with more than 500 Brexit-related projects and that cabinet splits were delaying the agreement of a negotiating strategy.

Publication of the memo, written by a Deloitte consultant working on Whitehall projects, infuriated Downing Street. The prime minister was said to have been personally affronted by the note, which criticised her for “drawing in decisions and details to settle matters herself”.

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Seeking to draw a line under the furore, the company has agreed not to bid for central government contracts for about six months, The Times understands. Industry sources believe that Deloitte feared a more draconian punishment without such an offer.

It would appear that the government only wants yes-men ...