Former United Kingdom Cabinet Secretaries, Lord Butler and Lord O’Donnell, have slammed Prime Minister, Liz Truss’s decision to sack Permanent Secretary of the Treasury, Sir Tom Scholar.
Speaking to Radio 4’s The World This Weekend program, Lord Butler (pictured) said this “very unusual and very regrettable” departure reminded him of the United States, where it was common for incoming Governments to appoint their own Public Servants.
Lord Butler, who served under Prime Ministers, Margaret Thatcher, Sir John Major and Sir Tony Blair, said the departure would prove disruptive.
“It’ll weaken them, but it’ll also corrupt our system, because one of those great advantages of having an independent, loyal Civil Service will be compromised,” Lord Butler said.
Lord O’Donnell, who was Cabinet Secretary to Sir Tony as well as successors Gordon Brown and David Cameron, said Ms Truss’s first few days in Government hadn’t been “as respectful as one would like”.
“Sacking someone with no notice for no apparent reason — someone held in high regard by Chancellors of the Exchequer of all political parties — is no way to earn the respect of the Treasury and the Civil Service,” Lord O’Donnell said.
Former Conservative Chancellor of the Exchequer, Philip Hammond said he was “disappointed but not surprised” by Sir Tom’s ousting.
“I am a little bit alarmed at what has become a bit of a trend in British politics for incoming Prime Ministers to fire senior Civil Servants or at least to manoeuvre them out of the door,” Mr Hammond said.
Asked to comment, the Treasury referred to the notice of Sir Tom’s departure, which thanked him for his “dedicated service” and said a replacement would be appointed shortly.
London, 13 September 2022
