Chris Wormald replaces Simon Case as cabinet secretary

Sir Chris Wormald has been named as the new cabinet secretary and head of the civil service.

The 56-year-old will replace Simon Case after he announced in September he would stand down as cabinet secretary at the end of the year for health reasons but would remain in place while his successor was chosen.

Sir Chris is currently permanent secretary at the Department of Health and Social Care, advising the environment secretary on policy and managing the budget.

He beat other senior current and former civil servants to the job, which was advertised with a £200,000 salary.

The other contenders were: Sir Olly Robbins, a former director-general of the civil service who was involved in Brexit talks, Dame Antonia Romeo, permanent secretary at the Ministry of Justice, and Tamara Finkelstein, permanent secretary at department for environment, food and rural affairs.

What does a cabinet secretary do?

They are the most senior civil service adviser to the prime minister and his cabinet.

Their role is to support and advise on the running of cabinet and cabinet committees, helping prepare agendas and supporting the government in reaching a collective agreement on policies.

They are often one of the PM’s senior advisers on how government works, and on major policy decisions.

How the PM and his cabinet secretary work together makes a big difference to the cabinet secretary’s influence.

They are also in charge of ensuring the civil service acts to deliver key manifesto commitments and policies, brokering decisions between ministers and departments and making sure they are followed through.

Not all cabinet secretaries are head of the civil service, but the last few have been.

This involves them managing civil servants, convening meetings of the departmental permanent secretaries, leading reform and improvement of the civil service and representing the civil service in parliament and in the media.

Most cabinet secretaries are appointed by the prime minister of the day, sometimes on the recommendation of the outgoing cabinet secretary.

After Mark Sedwill stood down in 2020 there was a formal competitive process to replace him, however Simon Case reportedly did not apply and was asked to take on the job by Boris Johnson.

Candidates to replace Mr Case were asked for a CV and a cover letter before being interviewed by a panel of former cabinet secretaries, permanent secretaries, head of the Ministry of Defence and the civil service commissioner.

Sir Keir then had the final say to appoint the role, which was advertised with a salary of about £200,000.

Mr Case, 45, was appointed in September 2020 and served four different prime ministers.

In an email to the civil service announcing his resignation in September, Mr Case said: “As many of you know, I have been undergoing medical treatment for a neurological condition over the last 18 months and, whilst the spirit remains willing, the body is not.

“It is a shame that I feel I have to spell this out, but my decision is solely to do with my health and nothing to do with anything else.”

Mr Case announced his resignation following a difficult few weeks for Downing Street during which damaging leaks and internal rows took over the narrative, with Sir Keir growing increasingly frustrated.

The top civil servant was said to have had a tense relationship with Sue Gray, Sir Keir’s former chief of staff who stepped down in October following accusations from some Labour figures about the party’s handling of ministers taking freebies.

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This article was originally published by Sky.com. Read the original article here.

What does a cabinet secretary do?

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