Sir Keir Starmer has appointed Dame Antonia Romeo as Britain’s first female cabinet secretary and head of the civil service.
The appointment, which has been rumoured for weeks, comes after allegations emerged that Dame Antonia was previously spoken to about her management style. She had faced claims of bullying relating to her time as consul general in New York in 2017, but was later cleared by the Cabinet Office following an inquiry.
Dame Antonia, who is currently permanent secretary at the Home Office, is the first female cabinet secretary in the more than 100-year history of the role. She succeeds Sir Chris Wormald, who became the latest member of the prime minister’s top team to quit last week as Sir Keir seeks to overhaul his Downing Street operation following a string of scandals.
Announcing the appointment, the prime minister praised Dame Antonia’s long career in the civil service.
“I am delighted to appoint Dame Antonia Romeo as the new cabinet secretary,” he said. “She is an outstanding public servant, with a 25‑year record of delivering for the British people. Since becoming prime minister, I’ve been impressed by her professionalism and determination to get things done.”
He added: “Antonia has shown she is the right person to drive the government to reform, and I look forward to working with her to deliver this period of national renewal.”
The prime minister defended Dame Antonia as an “outstanding leader” earlier this week amid growing expectations that she would be handed the role.
Asked about reports that the senior civil servant had been spoken to about her management style following the Cabinet office inquiry, the prime minister’s official spokesperson insisted that Dame Antonia’s record “speaks for itself”.
A source told the BBC that Dame Antonia had faced “tough conversations” about her leadership style in the wake of the investigation, adding that “there were some issues of personal style that grated with people”.
Dame Antonia, currently the longest-serving permanent secretary in government, was permanent secretary at the Department for International Trade and the Ministry of Justice before taking up the top job at the Home Office last year. She said it was a “huge privilege” to be appointed as the head of the civil service.
“The civil service is a great and remarkable institution, which I love,” she said. “We should be known for delivery, efficiency and innovation, working to implement the government’s agenda and meet the challenges the country faces.
“I look forward to working with all colleagues across the civil service to do this, in support of the prime minister and the government.”
It comes after Dame Antonia’s former boss, Simon McDonald, a crossbench peer and former permanent secretary at the Foreign Office, last week suggested he had doubts about a potential decision to appoint her. He said there should be a “full process” to appoint a new cabinet secretary, which “needs to start from scratch”.
Government sources dismissed Lord McDonald’s claims, saying there was “absolutely no basis for this criticism” and calling him “a senior male official whose time has passed”.
Sir Keir’s decision to replace Sir Chris was part of an attempt to draw a line under the scandal over the appointments of peers Peter Mandelson and Matthew Doyle to top roles despite their known association with sex offenders.
The government has vowed to improve its vetting processes after the prime minister claimed that Lord Mandelson had lied about the depth of his association with Jeffrey Epstein during his vetting before being appointed Britain’s ambassador to Washington.
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