Labour's First Secretary of State, Louise Haigh, set out plans to "rewire" the state, including three new taskforces, but faced Conservative criticism for simultaneously creating a new civil service body, the OneGov Delivery Agency. Tory deputy leader Alex Burghart accused the government of establishing "yet another massive quango" even as it claimed to be streamlining Whitehall, arguing this would leave ministers responsible for key services without giving them real control over them.

Burghart said the new agency would oversee government recruitment, civil service pensions, shared services and security vetting, along with "considerable public money", while ministers retained accountability but lost power. Haigh countered that the central civil service is expected to shrink under Andy Burnham's devolution plans, despite Conservative claims that headcount had risen by 11,000 since the general election. She also faced questions over the Treasury's continuing dominance, with Burghart suggesting plans for the new "Number 10 North" hub to lead on economic growth had been watered down, though Haigh insisted some functions had been transferred from the Treasury to the new unit.