“She is closely politically connected to the current [Conservative] government and has campaigned with many of them on important political matters that are still relevant to the challenges faced by departments,” Starmer wrote to the Cabinet Office at the time.
“This means that there are questions over whether she is in a position to provide advice and oversight that is independent, impartial and objective. Her appointment as the first civil service commissioner raises similar questions.”
Some MPs on the House of Commons Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee — which scrutinizes the workings of government — also expressed “reservations” about the ex-Labour MP’s suitability for the job at the time, including over her “perceived impartiality.” The committee, however, endorsed her appointment.
Leading the EU secretariat
Stuart has an oversight role on the appointment due to Starmer’s decision to appoint his incoming Brexit chief as a civil servant — rather than as a political special adviser, as Johnson did with his negotiator David Frost. Frost was also later inducted to the House of Lords and was made a government minister.
The person selected for the role will receive the official title of second permanent secretary at the Cabinet Office, a U.K. government department that supports the prime minister.
They will lead the newly formed EU secretariat, which is largely ready to go.