After declaring he was “furious” at “the state” last week, Starmer fired the head of the Foreign Office for apparently not doing enough to stop him appointing Mandelson to the top diplomatic posting. Officials and former top civil servants believe that was grossly unfair, when the real error was Starmer’s decision to choose Mandelson — a known friend of late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein — for the role.
Allies of the now ex-Foreign Office boss Olly Robbins are rallying to his cause, and want him to be reinstated. According to two people granted anonymity to speak about sensitive matters, some are even coordinating their efforts to discredit the prime minister and — in the most extreme cases — want to help to oust him.
On Tuesday, Robbins gave his own politely devastating version of events in evidence to Parliament’s foreign affairs committee. His allies described his performance as “outstanding,” with Mark Sedwill, a former Cabinet Secretary — the most senior official in the civil service — demanding in a letter to The Times newspaper that Robbins be given his job back. Simon McDonald, who also served as head of the Foreign Office until 2020, agreed, writing in The Guardian. Another former Cabinet Secretary, Gus O’Donnell, called on Starmer to “rebuild some of the trust lost” in recent days.
“This is now a difficult environment and I think the prime minister needs to do more now to show he values and appreciates what civil servants do,” Peter Ricketts, an ex-national security adviser, told Times Radio on Wednesday. “I think he’s got to go and show that he respects and appreciates civil servants.”
More interventions could follow. Cabinet ministers have also privately voiced concern over the dangers of a breakdown in relations with impartial officials.
Starmer’s decision to fire Robbins “will cast a long shadow” over the critical relationship between independent officials and the Labour government, said Alex Thomas, a former senior official and now executive director at the Institute for Government think tank in London. “This does feel like a big moment and it will matter.”