A bit of bureaucracy - an ideal cause of death? (7)
I believe the answer is:
cyanide
'cause of death?' is the definition.
'a bit of bureaucracy an ideal' is the wordplay.
'a bit of' indicates the answer is hidden within the clue (I've seen 'a bit' mean this (the answer is formed by a bit of the clue)).
'CYANIDE' is hidden in the letters of 'bureaucracy an ideal'.
(Other definitions for cyanide that I've seen before include "Nice day (anag) - poison" , "Poisonous compound" , "Extremely poisonous salt" , "Highly toxic substance" , "killer" .)