Foreign Office boss to step down early after merger with aid dept goes ahead
The Foreign Office’s most senior civil servant is expected to stand down early after Boris Johnson announced plans for a merger with the Department for International Development (DfID).
Sir Simon McDonald is understood to have told Whitehall officials that he will leave his post when a new “super-department” is formed in September. The prime minister sparked waves of outrage when he announced plans to axe DfID and roll overseas aid into a new-look Foreign Office, known as the Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO).
Sir Simon told civil servants this week that he was planning to retire in the new year but the timetable has now been sped up as the prime minister wanted a fresh face to head up the new department.
The senior mandarin told staff: “I fully respect that decision. In any case I shall have completed five years as PUS (permanent under-secretary) in the FCO at the end of August. I believe passionately that FCDO is the right move for our future overseas effort; the FCO’s merger with DfID is the culmination of my time here.
“But a new effort needs new leadership. Whoever (that is) will take on a simply wonderful job.”
Sir Simon, a former ambassador in Germany and Israel, worked alongside Mr Johnson when he was foreign secretary. However, he has long been believed to be unpopular with Mr Johnson’s administration over his perceived opposition to Brexit.
The announcement comes after Sir Simon was forced to make U-turn on his claim to MPs that the UK made a “political decision” not to join an EU scheme to source ventilators to treat coronavirus patients. He later declared he had been “incorrect” in his comments to the Foreign Affairs Committee, prompting speculation he had been ordered to recant by Downing Street.
Liberal Democrat foreign affairs spokesperson Alistair Carmichael said: “Sir Simon McDonald’s premature departure from the FCO will raise many questions. McDonald has been a constant voice of reason and his absence will be noticed at a time when the government appear intent on undermining the UK’s position on the world stage.
“The government’s bully boy approach to the civil service is dangerous and counterproductive at such a precarious moment in our country’s history.”
No 10 said the top diplomat had reached the end of his tenure when asked whether Sir Simon had been told by the prime minister to step down.
The prime minister’s official spokesperson said: “Five years, which is how long I believe Sir Simon has been serving for, is the standard length of tour in terms of a civil service role in the FCO. Simon has reached the end of his term and we want to make sure we have a new permanent secretary for the new Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office and to have that person in place right from the start.”
In a statement, Mr Johnson said: “I want to thank Simon McDonald for his strong leadership of the Foreign Office over the past five years and for the fantastic support he gave me while I was foreign secretary. Simon is an outstanding public servant who has dedicated himself to the building of the best diplomatic service in the world.”
Foreign secretary Dominic Raab also praised Sir Simon’s record in office, saying the “positive changes” he put in place would “continue to be felt long after his time here”.
He said: “Sir Simon is one of the finest diplomats of his generation, a dedicated public servant who helped guide the FCO during a remarkable period of change in the world. He can be immensely proud of his record of having served Britain across the globe from Berlin to Washington DC.
“It has been a real pleasure to work with Simon and I have valued his insight and advice.”