High-flyer likes his bikes (and Christmas jumpers)
BORIS Johnson’s new top civil servant was hired from Kensington Palace, where he is credited with boosting William and Kate’s public image.
Now Simon Case has to try to do the same for the Government, which has been rocked by a string of U-turns since the onset of the coronavius crisis.
The 41-year-old high-flyer – described as ‘patriotic to his core’ – has earned the Prime Minister’s trust since he was appointed on secondment from Kensington Palace as No10 permanent secretary in May.
Now the married father of three – who is a fan of Christmas jumpers – is to be head of the Civil Service, a hugely powerful role that gives him the task of reforming Whitehall from top to bottom.
His appointment was a surprise as it had been thought he wanted to return to his royal duties as the Duke of Cambridge’s private secretary.
During this period he modernised the prince’s operations and helped boost his and his wife’s standing after Harry and Meghan decided to depart for the United States.
Born in Bristol in 1978 and educated at Bristol Grammar School, Mr Case studied history at Cambridge University before entering the Civil Service in 2006. He also completed a PhD in political history at Queen Mary University of London.
He worked first in the Ministry of Defence and subsequently served as head of the Olympic Secretariat, a temporary team in the Cabinet Office overseeing the delivery of the 2012 games.
After this he worked as a private secretary in No10 to David Cameron, rising to the position of principal private secretary just months before the Brexit vote in 2016.
When she became Prime Minister, Theresa May gave him a new role as director general for the UK-EU Partnership, in which he worked on key aspects of Brexit.
In this role he earned the respect of key Brexiteers at a time when most Government officials were viewed with suspicion by Leavers.
However in 2018 he left Government to become private secretary to the Duke of Cambridge.
Now he is back in No10 it remains to be seen how well he will work together with Dominic Cummings, Mr Johnson’s controversial chief adviser.
Mr Case is married with three daughters and lists his recreations as cycling, rowing, running, swimming and amateur history, according to Who’s Who.