Downing Street has named former Treasury official Dan Rosenfield as prime minister Boris Johnson’s new chief of staff, in an appointment aimed at permanently filling the shoes of Dominic Cummings.
Rosenfield is a veteran of No.11 Downing Street and his Treasury career saw him serve as principal private secretary to chancellors Alistair Darling and George Osborne before he left the civil service in 2011 to take up a position at Bank of America Merrill Lynch.
A statement from Downing Street said Rosenfield – whose LinkedIn profile currently lists him as a partner at business and strategic affairs consultancy Hakluyt – would start work for the PM early next month and take on his full responsibilities at the start of next year.
“The prime minister has today appointed Dan Rosenfield as his chief of staff,” a statement from Johnson’s office said. “He will begin work in Downing Street on Dec 7 and officially take up the chief of staff role on Jan 1.”
Lord Edward Udny-Lister is currently serving as Johnson’s acting chief of staff – reprising a role he performed at City Hall when Johnson was mayor of London – following former chief adviser Cummings' dramatic departure two weeks ago.
According to a Financial Times story from 2016, Rosenfield’s “highest profile mandate” during his five years at Bank of America Merill Lynch was advising on the privatisation of Royal Mail. The paper said the move was a bigger triumph for investors than it was for Rosenfield’s “former paymasters” in Whitehall.
Royal Mail shares were floated at 330p in 2013 and soared to almost 600p within weeks, sparking concerns the business had been privatised too cheaply. However, the price has languished below the initial offer level for the past two years.
Rosenfield’s LinkedIn profile says he was a policy adviser at HMT before becoming principal private secretary to Darling in Gordon Brown’s Labour government.
Outside of business, Rosenfield has longstanding involvement with the Jewish Leadership Council, which coordinates efforts across a range of charitable organisations.
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