“New low” for government’s relationship with civil service – FDA responds following departure of Cabinet Secretary Chris Wormald

The FDA has responded to the announcement that Sir Chris Wormald has departed the role of Cabinet Secretary, with FDA General Secretary Dave Penman describing it as a “new low” for the government’s relationship with the civil service.

In a statement released after the Cabinet Secretary’s departure was confirmed, Penman said:

“The treatment of Cabinet Secretary Chris Wormald, the most senior civil servant in the country, is a new low for this government and its relationship with the civil service.

“Days of open speculation followed by an inevitable departure. What message does this send to the rest of the civil service on how they can be expected to be treated? A government that, only last month, said that it wants its civil servants to take risks and that ministers will have their back if they do, has just undermined that message in spectacular fashion.”

Penman continued:

“Wormald had barely started in the Cabinet Secretary role before the anonymous briefings started to scapegoat him and undermine his authority. 

“Briefings against him were vague and unsubstantiated – straight out of Dominic Cummings’s playbook.  This modus operandi goes beyond one individual – it is self-defeating and damages the whole civil service. It is worth remembering civil servants cannot publicly defend themselves. Undermining senior officials has a chilling effect throughout the civil service, from the leadership group down. 

“For the sake of good government, this charade of anonymous briefings against civil servants – followed by fake concern – must end.”

His comments were reported by BBC News, The Times, The Telegraph, The Guardian, Sky News, The Mirror, The Express, Civil Service World and GB News.

Prior to the announcement of Sir Chris’s departure, Penman appeared on BBC Radio 4’s World at One, criticising anonymous briefings which had escalated over the past week amidst speculation about his future as Cabinet Secretary. Penman told the programme:

“Chris Wormald is currently the Cabinet Secretary. What we’re seeing is speculation and press briefing, presumably from people in Number 10, about his position while he’s serving the country as Cabinet Secretary. And that is just extraordinary, not only undermining in terms of Chris as an individual, but the role of Cabinet Secretary and has a chilling effect across the civil service. This is no way to run a country.

“Civil servants serve the government of the day. If you are a Permanent Secretary or a Cabinet Secretary, you have to have the confidence of a minister or Prime Minister. They’re entitled to their view on that, but this is no way to treat anyone to allow this sort of speculation to continue. And there is no current vacancy that people are speculating about in terms of other candidates.”

In an opinion piece for Civil Service World, the FDA General Secretary also outlined that the “systematic undermining of the Cabinet Secretary, fuelled by the disappointingly inevitable anonymous briefings and ultimate departure, is not simply about the treatment of a committed public servant, as reprehensible as that is. It is also about effective government.”

Penman argued that “instability does not make for more effective government.

“We’ll soon be on our third Cabinet Secretary in under 18 months, as well as the Prime Minister’s third chief of staff. Over half of the ministers left or changed roles in the autumn reshuffle. We’ve seen a number of senior departures across the service and now, if an incumbent Permanent Secretary is picked to fill the vacancy, we will see more.”

He called on Prime Minister Keir Starmer to take action, saying, “the briefing has to stop. Plausible deniability is not good enough and it never was. Only the Prime Minister can stop what is ultimately done in his name.”

Penman also discussed comments made by former Permanent Secretary of the then-Foreign and Commonwealth Office Sir Simon McDonald, amidst speculation Home Office Permanent Secretary Antonia Romeo is due to replace Sir Chris Wormald. Penman said:

“Antonia Romeo, if she is a candidate… is currently Permanent Secretary at the Home Office. That requires the highest security vetting in the country. 

“Simon McDonald is a Peer of the Realm, a former Permanent Secretary at the Foreign Office. There are few people who will have the ability to give his opinion and input how to set out his views around any particular candidate than someone with his background.

“The idea that he stands in front of a TV camera, tries to undermine one of those candidates, and does that knowing, because he experienced this, that she cannot defend herself publicly, I think is a really poor judgement from him.”

Penman’s comments were reported by The Standard, the Financial Times and Civil Service World.