HM Treasury Removes Numerical Reasoning Test After Finding It Disproportionately Affected Ethnic Minority Candidates

HM Treasury removed the numerical reasoning test from its graduate recruitment process after a review of the 2019 campaign found the assessment had an adverse impact on candidates from ethnic minority backgrounds, GB News reported. Documents obtained through a Freedom of Information request showed that numerical reasoning was identified as a stage where proportionally fewer ethnic minority candidates advanced.

After the test was dropped for the 2020 campaign, the adverse impact on candidate diversity fell.

In 2019 officials had already increased the number of candidates passing the situational judgement test to maximise the number of diverse candidates reaching later stages. In 2023 the department allowed more applicants through the initial sift because raising the benchmark risked reducing diversity among those progressing. The Treasury later removed verbal reasoning tests as well.

Internal papers indicated these tests produced a greater adverse impact on ethnicity than numerical tests, and officials cited advice from recruitment consultancy Rare that candidates from ethnic minority backgrounds tended to struggle more with verbal testing.

In 2024 the verbal assessment was replaced by the Civil Service Work Strengths Test, which asks candidates to respond to statements about their preferred ways of working and personal behaviour. Treasury board meeting minutes stated the department wanted more diverse ethnicities at assessment centre.

An HM Treasury spokesman said it was complete nonsense to suggest standards had been lowered for the sake of diversity and added that the department remained proud of employing people from a wide range of backgrounds while maintaining rigorous, merit-based recruitment.