Council of Civil Service Unions v Minister for the Civil Service (GCHQ) is a British intelligence agency that provides signals intelligence to the British government and armed forces. Prior to 1983 its existence was not acknowledged, despite the fact that it openly recruited graduates. Following a spy scandal in 1983, the organisation became known to the public, and the government of Margaret Thatcher decided a year later that employees would not be allowed to join a trade union for national security reasons. The Minister for the Civil Service is a position held "ex officio" by the Prime Minister. This was done through an Order in Council, an exercise of the Royal
Civil Service of the People's Republic of China areas such as transportation, housing, and healthcare. The ranks also serve as a rough order of precedence when dictating official protocol when multiple officials attend the same event. The current civil service ranking system has 27 different ranks (from previously of total 15 levels) and a grade ("dangci") system within each rank (at most 14 grades for each rank) to reflect seniority and performance; a combination of rank and "dangci" ultimately determine pay and benefits. The 27 ranks are sub-divisions of 11 "levels". The following is a non-exhaustive list of party and state positions corresponding to their civil service rank.