Principal Private Secretary to the Prime Minister
Principal Private Secretary to the Prime Minister | |
---|---|
Royal Arms as used by Her Majesty's Government | |
Prime Minister's Office | |
Appointer | Prime Minister |
Formation | 1757 |
Website | 10 Downing Street |
The Principal Private Secretary to the Prime Minister is a senior official in the British Civil Service who acts as Principal Private Secretary to the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. The holder of this office is traditionally the head of the Prime Minister's Office. In the Civil Service, the role is currently graded as a Director-General. To date, no woman has ever occupied the office.[1] In fiction, the character of Bernard Woolley in the television series Yes, Prime Minister, occupied this post.[2]
The current Principal Private Secretary is Peter Hill, who was appointed by Theresa May on 10 May 2017.[3]
Recent history
During Tony Blair's administration, he modified the law under which the Civil Service operated to create the role of Downing Street Chief of Staff, which though held by a political advisor outranked the Principal Private Secretary. When Gordon Brown ascended to office, he reversed the change to the Civil Service law. When David Cameron became Prime Minister, he promoted the then-PPS to a new post of "Permanent Secretary, Downing Street", a position which took over heading the Prime Minister's Office.[4] In 2012, the postholder, Jeremy Heywood, was appointed as Cabinet Secretary, this post ceased to exist, and the role of Civil Service head of the Office reverted to the Principal Private Secretary.
List of Principal Private Secretaries to the Prime Minister (from 1757, incomplete)
# | Principal Private Secretary | Years | Prime Minister |
---|---|---|---|
1 | Algernon West | 1868–1872 | William Ewart Gladstone |
2 | Arthur Godley | 1880–1882 | |
3 | Edward Walter Hamilton CB | 1882–1885 | |
4 | The Marquess of Granby | 1885–1888 | |
5 | Capt the Hon Schomberg Kerr McDonnell CB | 1888–1892 | Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury |
6 | Sir Algernon West KCB | 1892–1894 | William Ewart Gladstone |
7 | Capt the Hon Sir Schomberg Kerr McDonnell KCB CVO | 1894–1902 | |
8 | John Satterfield Sandars CVO | 1902–1905 | Arthur Balfour |
8A | Arthur Ponsonby[5] | 1905-1908 | Henry Campbell-Bannerman |
9 | Vaughan Nash CB CVO | 1908–1911 | Herbert Henry Asquith |
10 | Sir Maurice Bonham Carter KCB | 1911–1916 | Herbert Henry Asquith |
11 | Sir John Davies KCB CVO | 1916–1922 | David Lloyd George |
12 | Lt Col Sir Edward Grigg KCVO CMG DSO MC | 1921–1922 | |
13 | Sir Patrick Gower KBE CB CVO | 1922–1928 | |
14 | Lt Col Sir Ronald Waterhouse KCB CMG CVO | 1922–1928 | |
14A | Robert Vansittart[6] | 1928-1930 | |
15 | Alan Barlow CB CBE | 1933–1934 | Ramsay MacDonald |
16 | Osmund Cleverly CB CVO | 1936–1939 | |
17 | Arthur Rucker CB CBE | 1939–1940 | Neville Chamberlain |
18 | Eric Seal CB | 1940–1941 | Winston Churchill |
19 | John Martin CB CVO | 1941–1945 | |
20 | Leslie Rowan CB CVO | 1945–1947 | Clement Attlee |
21 | Laurence Helsby CB | 1947–1950 | |
22 | Denis Rickett CB CMG | 1950–1951 | |
23 | Jock Colville CB CVO | 1951–1955 | Winston Churchill |
24 | David Pitblado CB CVO | 1951–1956 | |
25 | Frederick Bishop CVO | 1956–1959 | |
26 | Derek Mitchell CVO | 1964–1966 | Harold Wilson |
27 | Lt Col Arthur Halls MBE TD | 1966–1970 | |
28 | Alexander Isserlis | 1970 | |
29 | Robert Armstrong CB CVO | 1970–1975 | |
30 | Kenneth Stowe CB | 1975–1979 | |
31 | Clive Whitmore | 1979–1982 | Margaret Thatcher |
32 | Robin Butler | 1982–1985 | |
33 | Nigel Wicks CBE | 1985–1988 | |
34 | Andrew Turnbull CB CVO | 1988–1992 | |
35 | The Hon Alex Allan | 1992–1997 | John Major |
36 | Sir John Holmes KBE CMG CVO | 1997–1999 | Tony Blair |
37 | Jeremy Heywood CB CVO | 1999–2003 | |
38 | Ivan Rogers | 2003–2006 | |
39 | Oliver Robbins | 2006–2007 | |
40 | Tom Scholar | 2007–2008 | Gordon Brown |
41 | Sir Jeremy Heywood KCB CVO | 2008–2010 | |
42 | James Bowler | 2010–2011 | David Cameron |
43 | Chris Martin CB CVO | 2011–2015 | |
44 | Simon Case | 2015–2017 | |
45 | Peter Hill | 2017–present | Theresa May |
References
- ↑ The Lord Hennessy (2000). The Prime Minister: The Office And Its Holders Since 1945. London: Allen Lane. ISBN 978-0713993400.
- ↑ Lynn, J.; Jay A. (1989). The Complete Yes Prime Minister. London: BBC Books. p. 8. ISBN 978-0563207733.
We are especially grateful also to Sir Bernard Woolley GCB, formerly Hacker's Principal Private Secretary at Number Ten Downing Street
- ↑ "Peter Hill". Gov.uk. Retrieved 22 July 2017.
- ↑ "Cabinet Office Structure Charts, May 2010" (PDF). Cabinet Office, HM Government. May 2010. Archived from the original (PDF) on 13 October 2010. Retrieved 6 July 2010.
- ↑ British Political Facts 1900–1994, Butler & Butler 1994, P284
- ↑ British Political Facts 1900–1994, Butler & Butler 1994, P284