Starmer gets his woman: PM appoints first female head of the civil service... despite allegations of bullying in her old job
Keir Starmer has made his controversial new selection to lead the civil service and break up the No 10 'boys club'.
Despite concerns having been raised about her record in government, Dame Antonia Romeo is the first woman to take up the role of Cabinet Secretary following the sacking of Sir Chris Wormald after barely a year in post.
The announcement was slipped out just minutes after news broke that the police had arrived at Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor's home – with the Prime Minister praising Dame Antonia's 'determination to get things done'.
Labour's former deputy leader Harriet Harman welcomed the move, saying Dame Antonia would help dissolve the clique of Downing Street male advisers and aides blamed for creating a toxic environment at the heart of government.
But critics challenged her suitability following past allegations of bullying and self-promotion – as well as a reputation for being Whitehall's 'Queen of Woke'.
Shadow minister Neil O'Brien questioned whether her appointment had been properly vetted in the wake of an extraordinary public warning from her former boss Simon McDonald, who said 'more due diligence' was needed before she was offered the job.
Mr O'Brien said there were also 'serious unanswered questions' about the removal of Sir Chris just days after he was put in charge of the process of releasing tens of thousands of sensitive documents relating to Peter Mandelson's appointment as US ambassador.
The former mandarin is thought to have received a pay-off of at least £260,000 when he joined a cast list of senior officials discarded by Sir Keir, which now includes two chiefs of staff and four directors of communications.
Dame Antonia Romeo, the new head of the civil service, pictured with King Charles in 2023
Dame Antonia pictured with actress Brooke Shields at a gala in New York in 2017
Mr O'Brien said: 'In light of the shambles over the appointment of Peter Mandelson and the peerage given to Matthew Doyle, the Government needs to spell out precisely what due diligence was undertaken of this new Cabinet Secretary.'
Reform UK's Zia Yusuf said Dame Antonia was 'the embodiment of all that's wrong with the Blob' and cited her reported promotion of trans and diversity issue.
A former Tory minister, who worked alongside her, described her as an 'egomaniac', saying of her time at the Department for International Trade: 'It is incredible that Whitehall had a building big enough to contain the egos of Antonia Romeo and Liz Truss in one place.'
The source added: 'She could be effective if the priority of the Government aligned with her own self-promotion. But Keir Starmer will have to watch his back – she always had at least one eye on her next job and even now is no doubt thinking about future directorships she might be able to land.'
Dame Antonia previously faced accusations of bullying related to her time as the British Consul-General in New York in 2016 and 2017.
The Foreign Office is reported to have concluded there was a 'serious case to answer' but she was later cleared by the Cabinet Office.
This week, it emerged she repaid travel expenses after commuting from London to New York at taxpayers' expense. The costs, believed to run into tens of thousands of pounds, were returned after officials raised concerns regarding the bills.
She also used her official residence in the US to host glitzy parties for the likes of former Vogue editor Dame Anna Wintour, and posted photographs of herself with stars, including Absolutely Fabulous actress Dame Joanna Lumley.
Staff claimed she demanded they put up framed articles about her from Vogue magazine in the guest bathroom of the residence so that 'regardless of how you use the bathroom, you have to stare at a photo of her in a magazine spread staring back at you'.
Dame Antonia is the first woman to take up the role of Cabinet Secretary following the sacking of Sir Chris Wormald
Allies of Dame Antonia have accused critics of misogyny and insisted she is the best person for the job after serving as permanent secretary at three government departments, most recently the Home Office.
Baroness Harman welcomed the appointment of the first female Cabinet Secretary as a 'milestone moment' and added: 'Another chink in the wall of the boys club.'
Dame Antonia said it was a 'huge privilege' to be asked to lead the civil service.
She added: 'We should be known for delivery, efficiency and innovation, working to implement the Government's agenda and meet the challenges the country faces.'
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