faceless bureaucrat

Noun

faceless bureaucrat (plural faceless bureaucrats)

1. (derogatory, idiomatic, usually) A stereotypical anonymous, interchangeable and unaccountable government official.
   • The desk-killer operates from within a network of other faceless functionaries radiating in every direction and in which the sense of responsibility could be passed along from faceless bureaucrat to faceless bureaucrat with the greatest of ease, as if it is nothing but an item passed along a...1983, Alan Rosenberg, “The Philosophical Implications of the Holocaust”, in Perspectives on the Holocaust, →ISBN
   • If you want a parliamentary democracy with responsible and accountable ministers, you have to complement the high-profile political role of a minister with that of a neutral, faceless bureaucrat, confined to the role of an adviser.1992, Richard Batley, The Political Executive, →ISBN, page 29