Sir Michael Bayldon Barber (born 24 November 1955[2]) is a British former public servant and educationist known for serving as head of the Prime Minister's Delivery Unit under Tony Blair’s government.

He was the founder and first head of the Prime Minister's Delivery Unit under Prime Minister Tony Blair, and later served as chief education advisor at Pearson,[7] and as a partner at McKinsey, where he was head of the global education practice.

He served as co-chair of Boston Consulting Group's not-for-profit foundation and the Centre for Public Impact.

In 2021, he was asked by the UK Prime Minister and Cabinet Secretary to conduct a review of government delivery after COVID-19.

Instruction to Deliver: Fighting to Reform Britain’s Public Services (Methuen 2008),[19] It was described by the Financial Times as "one of the best books about British Government for many years".

[23] Barber was asked by the UK Treasury in 2017 to conduct a review into how government measures impact each taxpayer pound spent on public services.

[25] In 2021, Barber was asked by the Prime Minister and the Cabinet Secretary to review government delivery after COVID-19.

[26] In November 2022, British Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt announced that Barber would serve in an advisory role on the government's skills reform programme.