Sir Olly Robbins has returned to government as permanent secretary at the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, it has been announced.
Robbins, who was perm sec at the now-defunct Department for Exiting the European Union before becoming chief Brexit negotiator under then-prime minister Theresa May, left government in 2019.
He spent three months at the University of Oxford’s Blavatnik School of Government as the first-ever Heywood Fellow – a position funded by the Heywood Foundation in memory of the late cabinet secretary – before moving to the banking giant Goldman Sachs.
He is now partner and head of Europe, Middle East and Africa at Hakluyt, a global strategic advisory firm.
Announcing the appointment, foreign secretary David Lammy said Robbins’s “extensive experience of economic and security issues, gained across a range of Whitehall departments, will stand us in good stead as we reorient the FCDO to focus on growth and migration, while continuing to double down on national security – the foundation of our Plan for Change”.
“I have set out from day one that I want to rewire the FCDO to act as the international delivery arm of this government’s missions, as well as devising our broader international strategy. Olly Robbins is exactly the person to help me deliver this and I am delighted to welcome him into the FCDO,” he added.
Robbins joined the Treasury as a graduate in 1996 and went on to hold a series of senior roles that saw him work closely with a number of prime ministers during his 23-year stretch in the civil service before his move to the private sector.
His jobs included principal private secretary to Tony Blair and Gordon Brown; deputy national security adviser and director general of the civil service – a Cabinet Office post – during David Cameron’s administration; and second permanent secretary at the Home Office when May was home secretary. He later served as May’s chief Europe adviser as well as leading negotiations on Brexit.
He was reported to be on a list of candidates being considered for the role of cabinet secretary after Simon Case announced his plans to step down on health grounds last year. However, former Department of Health and Social Care perm sec Sir Chris Wormald was named as Case’s successor last month.
Robbins takes over as the FCDO’s most senior civil servant from Sir Philip Barton, who is stepping down after nearly four decades in the FCDO.
Wormald said: "I would like to congratulate Olly on his appointment and welcome him back to the civil service. He brings huge experience to this role, both from his time previously in the civil service and his recent experience in the private sector. I look forward to working with Olly in this role as he leads the FCDO to deliver on a wide range of international issues and make a positive difference in a world where geopolitical change is intensifying."
The cab sec also paid tribute to Barton for his "outstanding dedication and service", particularly during the last five years leading the FCDO.
Robbins said he was taking on the role with "with huge excitement".
"It has been my pleasure to work alongside the FCDO’s predecessors for most of my civil service career. I’ve seen our extraordinary diplomatic and development capabilities first hand from Washington DC to Mogadishu, Dublin to Sana’a and Abuja to New Delhi," he said.
"After five years out of the civil service, I return believing more strongly than ever in the value of those capabilities and the public service principles that underpin them, while convinced that maintaining the UK’s lead depends critically on understanding and co-opting the pace of change evident in the UK and around the world."
"I look forward to supporting the foreign secretary and leading the FCDO’s first-rate staff to strengthen the UK’s influence with our partners around the world," he added.