People who know him believe the new head of the United Kingdom Public Service will resist any attempts by the Government to politicise the bureaucracy.
They say 41-year-old Simon Case (pictured) has been “imprinted” with the values of the Public Service and has the skills to protect senior officers as well as win over Prime Minister, Boris Johnson’s most zealous advisers.
However, they also say Mr Case will have to win over senior Public Servants who have so far survived a Government cull during which five Permanent Secretaries have either resigned or been sacked.
Some remain suspicious of his youth and inexperience as he has never run a big-spending Department.
Among those who expect the new Cabinet Secretary to thrive is historian, Lord Hennessy, who supervised Mr Case’s PhD on the functioning of the Joint Intelligence Committee during the early part of the Cold War.
Lord Hennessy said he had been worried about the increasing politicisation of the senior Public Service.
“This appointment is a beacon of hope because he is a Public Service man through and through. He believes in speaking truth unto power and all the great virtues of the grand tradition. It goes through to his last fibre,” Lord Hennessy said.
Former head of the Public Service, Lord Kerslake said Mr Case would have to win over staff bruised by the Government’s recent changes.
“I wish him well; he is clearly a capable person and has worked at the centre of Government for some time and has the confidence of the Prime Minister, but he has less experience on operations than many,” Lord Kerslake said.
“He will have to think about how he connects with those who have run big operations,” he said.
London, 5 September 2020
