Robert Devereux (civil servant)

Sir Robert Devereux
KCB
Permanent Secretary for the Department for Work and Pensions
In office
2011–2018
Prime Minister David Cameron
Theresa May
Minister Iain Duncan Smith
Stephen Crabb
Damian Green
David Gauke
Esther McVey
Preceded by Sir Leigh Lewis
Succeeded by Peter Schofield
Permanent Secretary for the Department for Transport
In office
2007–2011
Prime Minister Gordon Brown
David Cameron
Minister Douglas Alexander
Ruth Kelly
Geoff Hoon
The Lord Adonis
Philip Hammond
Preceded by Sir David Rowlands
Succeeded by Dame Lin Homer
Personal details
Born Robert John Devereux
(1957-01-15) 15 January 1957

Sir Robert John Devereux, KCB (/ˈdɛvəˌruː/; born 15 January 1957) is a retired senior British civil servant, who served as Permanent Secretary for the Department for Transport from 2007 to 2011,[1] and then the Department for Work and Pensions from 2011 until his retirement in January 2018.[2][3]

Education

Devereux arms

Devereux was educated at St John's College, Oxford between 1975 and 1978, before studying for a master's degree at the University of Edinburgh.

Career

Devereux joined the Civil Service in 1979; until 1983 he worked in the Overseas Development Administration, before working at HM Treasury until 1994. He was with the Department of Social Security between 1996 and 2001. From 2007 to 2011, Devereux was Permanent Secretary at the Department for Transport. He became Permanent Secretary at the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) on 1 January 2011. As of 2015, Devereux was paid a salary of between £180,000 and £184,999 by the department, making him one of the 328 most highly paid people in the British public sector at that time.[4]

In 2013, it was reported that the Cabinet Secretary, Sir Jeremy Heywood, informed the Prime Minister David Cameron that he was concerned about the “concerted political briefing campaign” against Devereux over failures in the DWP’s Universal Credit programme. He is understood to have made clear that he did not believe Devereux should be singled out for blame for the project, and that responsibility also lay with Iain Duncan Smith, the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions. He is also said to have pointed out that the public undermining of a Permanent Secretary was harming Civil Service morale, and was unfair because, as a government official, Sir Robert was unable to defend himself.[5]

On 11th October 2017, it was announced that Sir Robert would retire from his post on his 61st birthday. He was succeeded by Peter Schofield, at that point the department's Director-General for Finance, in January 2018.

Honours

KCB insignia

Devereux was appointed Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath (KCB) in the 2016 New Year Honours for services to transport and welfare and for voluntary service in Kilburn, London.[6][7]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Department for Work and Pensions (27 September 2010). "New Permanent Secretary for the Department for Work and Pensions". Retrieved 5 January 2011.
  2. ↑ A & C Black (2011). "DEVEREUX, Robert John". Who's Who 2011. Oxford University Press. Retrieved 5 January 2011.
  3. ↑ HM Government (2018-01-12). "Appointment of Peter Schofield as Permanent Secretary at the Department for Work and Pensions". www.gov.uk. Retrieved 2018-01-15.
  4. ↑ "Senior officials 'high earners' salaries as at 30 September 2015 - GOV.UK". www.gov.uk. 2015-12-17. Retrieved 2016-03-13.
  5. ↑ Wright, Oliver (2013-11-24). "Exclusive: Top mandarin hits back at Iain Duncan Smith over universal". The Independent. Retrieved 2018-01-15.
  6. ↑ "No. 61450". The London Gazette (Supplement). 30 December 2015. p. N3.
  7. ↑ "New Year's Honours 2016 list" (pdf). GOV.UK. 30 December 2015. Retrieved 30 December 2015.
Government offices
Preceded by
Sir David Rowlands		 Permanent Secretary of the
Department for Transport
2007–2011		 Succeeded by
Dame Lin Homer
Preceded by
Sir Leigh Lewis		 Permanent Secretary of the
Department for Work and Pensions
2011–2018		 Succeeded by
Peter Schofield
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