Downing Street’s most senior civil servant is negotiating his departure as part of a wider shake-up of Keir Starmer’s operation after his most dramatic 48 hours as prime minister, sources have told the Guardian.
Chris Wormald, the cabinet secretary, is understood to be negotiating the terms of No 10’s departure, making him the third senior staff member to leave in recent days.
Wormald was appointed just over a year ago, but some close to Starmer have been under pressure for months. came to see him As a “disastrous” appointment.
A government source said the “writing was on the wall” for Wormald, with Starmer keen to reassert his authority over both his parliamentary party and the wider government after the turmoil of the past few days.
Another source said Wormald was in talks to take a seat in the House of Lords as part of his exit deal.
Wormald was appointed at the end of 2024, moving from his previous post as chief civil servant at the Department of Health following the departure of Simon Case.
He is one of four on the Prime Minister’s shortlist, which also includes Ollie Robbins, now permanent under-secretary at the Foreign Office, Antonia Romeo, permanent secretary at the Ministry of Justice, and Tamara Finkelstein, a former permanent secretary at the Environment Department.
Wormald was seen as the safest of the four candidates with Starmer at the time Appreciating the “wealth of experience”. He brought to the role.
However, government insiders have since expressed irritation at Wormald’s reluctance to embrace major reforms of the civil service, with some accusing him of “hand-wringing” about problems instead of coming up with solutions.
Wormald is the latest senior Downing Street staffer to leave after a string of departures in the past 48 hours. Morgan McSweeneythe Prime Minister’s Chief of Staff, and Tim Allanhis communications director.
Allan’s resignation came hours later Call from anus serverthe Scottish Labor leader, has become the most prominent party figure to call for a change of leader, to keep the prime minister in place.
The departure of McSweeney, who has worked with him since he became prime minister labor The leader, Stormer, has prompted a wider rethink of how Downing Street works as he tries to get back on the front foot.
The prime minister has appointed Vidya Alakeson and Jill Cuthbertson as her joint acting chiefs of staff, but is understood to be considering changing the way the role operates in the long term.
One suggestion is that Starmer’s role should be split in two, with one taking delivery responsibilities across government and the other handling politics and relations with the Labor Party in particular.
Some in Downing Street believe Wormald is spreading himself too thin to get a grip on whether the government will deliver on Starmer’s priorities.
Under David Cameron, the role of Cabinet Secretary has been divided into one person advising the Prime Minister, another person responsible for the Cabinet Office and another responsible for the civil service generally.
The shake-up comes just five months after the last Downing Street reshuffle, in which Labor MP Darren Jones was appointed principal secretary to the prime minister, with a remit to resolve interdepartmental squabbles and ensure the government lives up to its promises.
