Fruit for senior civil servant (8)
I believe the answer is:
mandarin
This clue is a double definition.
'fruit' is the first definition.
(mandarin is a kind of fruit)
'senior civil servant' is the second definition.
'for' is the link.
(Other definitions for mandarin that I've seen before include "Chinese official - fruit" , "Powerful official; fruit" , "Variety of citrus fruit" , "Many millions speak of this" , "Form of Chinese" .)