Civil service chief to take break for cancer treatment
THE Government’s top civil servant is to step aside until September to be treated for cancer.
Cabinet Secretary Sir Jeremy Heywood was diagnosed with the disease last year.
He had continued to work while receiving treatment, but No 10 said a recurrence of the disease, coupled with a related infection, meant he would now take a leave of absence.
His departure robs the Prime Minister of one of her key advisers, who sits beside her at Cabinet, attends all toplevel meetings and is a central figure at the daily 8.30am Downing Street briefing.
He will be replaced temporarily by Sir Mark Sedwill, the Government’s national security adviser, who attended Cabinet in Sir Jeremy’s place for the first time yesterday. Sir Mark is a former diplomat who earned the respect of Mrs May while working for her as the top civil servant at the Home Office and was promoted to national security adviser last year.
Ministers at yesterday’s meeting paid tribute to Sir Jeremy, 56, and signed a ‘get well soon’ card.
The absence of Sir Jeremy, who has held senior No 10 roles under Tony Blair, Gordon Brown and David Cameron, could upset the delicate balance in Government at a critical juncture.
It means he will no longer attend the crunch Chequers summit next week, when ministers will attempt to thrash out their differences on Brexit. And it could leave Mrs May’s chief Brexit adviser Oliver Robbins more exposed to political attack.
Sir Jeremy is said to have played a key role in the promotion of Mr Robbins, who some ministers accuse of sidelining Brexit Secretary David Davis, as well as working to prevent a clean break from Brussels.
But insiders suggest the temporary arrangement will make little difference in the short term as much of Sir Jeremy’s absence is in Parliament’s summer recess, when Government business is light.