Overview
- Multiple outlets report Sir Chris Wormald is negotiating his exit roughly 14 months after taking the post, with a payoff said to be around £250,000.
- Government sources say Dame Antonia Romeo is the prime minister’s preferred choice to replace him, pending the Civil Service Commission’s decision on process.
- The Intelligence and Security Committee pressed for vetting papers on Lord Mandelson’s ambassadorial appointment after Wormald was unavailable for a planned meeting.
- Whitehall figures warn that replacing the head of the civil service during broader No 10 turnover could prove destabilising, while the Cabinet Office has declined to comment.
- The field has narrowed as Tamara Finkelstein has left the service and Sir Olly Robbins is linked to the Mandelson vetting, and former FCO chief Lord McDonald publicly urged No 10 to avoid a rushed appointment.