Chris Wormald to become new civil service head

Sir Chris Wormald volition go the caller caput of the civilian work and Cabinet Secretary aboriginal this month.

The premier curate has appointed him to regenerate Simon Case, who announced helium was lasting down successful September aft 4 years successful the role, including during the Covid-19 pandemic and Partygate scandal.

Sir Chris, who has headed the Department for Health and Social Care since 2016, volition beryllium the astir elder authoritative advisor to the premier curate and Cabinet.

The premier curate said delivering the government's priorities would mean "re-wiring" the British authorities to present reform.

Sir Chris volition instrumentality up the station connected 16 December, erstwhile the PM said helium would beryllium liable for the government's "five missions", which are astatine the bosom of Labour's program for reform.

The PM said: "He brings a wealthiness of acquisition to this relation astatine a captious infinitesimal successful the enactment of alteration this caller authorities has begun.

"To alteration this country, we indispensable alteration the mode authorities serves this country. That is what mission-led authorities volition do.

"From breaking down silos crossed authorities to harnessing the unthinkable imaginable of exertion and innovation, it volition necessitate thing little than the implicit re-wiring of the British authorities to present bold and ambitious semipermanent reform."

Sir Chris said that enactment would mean civilian servants learning caller skills successful bid to lucifer the government's ambition, adding: "That volition necessitate each and each 1 of america to clasp the alteration docket successful however the British authorities operates."

One authorities root who is simply a instrumentality of Sir Chris said: “He’s a consummate Whitehall insider, knows however authorities works similar the backmost of his manus and is precisely the idiosyncratic you'd prosecute if you privation to propulsion done a large docket quickly.”

But erstwhile Downing Street advisor Dominic Cummings, who was moving successful No 10 during the Covid pandemic, criticised the appointment, penning connected X: "The Westminster strategy is wholly determined to defy immoderate change."

Case had to step speech from an probe into Downing Street parties aft it emerged helium had hosted an lawsuit during lockdown.

Thanking Case for his "service to our state and for the invaluable enactment helium has fixed to maine personally", Sir Keir Starmer added: "He has been a singular nationalist servant implicit galore years, and our champion wishes spell to him and his household arsenic helium present takes clip to absorption connected his health."