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Dame Antonia Romeo has been appointed as Britain’s first female Cabinet Secretary, ending days of speculation over who will hold the country’s most senior civil service post.
Romo, the frontrunner for the role and previously permanent secretary at the Home Office, replaces Sir Chris Wormald, who was ousted in February after just 14 months in the post.
Romo’s potential appointment had sparked controversy due to previous allegations of bullying when she was Consul General in New York between 2016 and 2017.
Sir Simon Macdonald, former Permanent Secretary of the Foreign Office, told Channel 4 that if Romo was promoted to the post, it would show “there is still some way to go for due diligence”.
The claims were rejected by the Cabinet Office at the time “on the grounds that there was no case to answer”.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said on Thursday: “I am delighted to appoint Dame Antonia Romeo as the new Cabinet Secretary. She is an outstanding public servant, with a 25-year record of working for the British people.”
Romo said: “It is a great privilege to be asked to serve as Cabinet Secretary and head of the civil service… I look forward to working with all colleagues in the civil service to do this in support of the Prime Minister and the Government.”
This is a developing story
