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Cabinet Office Senior Appointments

The Cabinet Secretary today announced three new appointments at senior level in the Cabinet Office. The three appointments are:

Jeremy Heywood, presently Managing Director and co–head of the UK Investment Banking Division at Morgan Stanley, will become head of Domestic Policy and strategy;

Jon Cunliffe, currently Second Permanent Secretary, Macroeconomic Policy and International Finance at HM Treasury, will become head of International Economic Affairs and Europe;

Simon McDonald, who is Director, Iraq at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, will become head of Foreign and Defence Policy.

Mr Heywood, Mr Cunliffe and Mr McDonald will lead new structures in the Cabinet Office designed to strengthen policy, strategy and co–ordination at the centre of Government.

The three new senior staff will have the role and title of the Prime Minister's senior advisers on domestic policy, international economic issues and Europe, and foreign and defence issues respectively. All three will report directly to the Cabinet Secretary, Sir Gus O'Donnell.

These appointments will take effect soon. Mr Cunliffe and Mr McDonald will work closely with Sir Nigel Sheinwald and Kim Darroch, the Prime Minister's advisors on foreign and European affairs at 10 Downing Street, before their moves to Washington and Brussels respectively, which have already been announced.

These appointments were made by the Cabinet Secretary with the agreement of the Prime Minister, in consultation with the Chancellor of the Exchequer and the First Civil Service Commissioner.

Notes for editors

Jon Cunliffe

Jon Cunliffe, 54, has been Second Permanent Secretary at HM Treasury since 2005, leading the Macroeconomic Policy and International Finance Directorate. Prior to that, he led the Finance, Regulation and Industry Directorate in the Treasury, having held a number of senior positions in the Department and in the Department of Transport. As well as leading on European Union business, this new role will lead on the international dimensions of key issues such as trade, energy, and climate change, as well as international development.

Jeremy Heywood

Jeremy Heywood, 45 is currently Managing Director and co–head of the UK Investment Banking Division at Morgan Stanley. This is on unpaid leave from the civil service. Before joining Morgan Stanley, Jeremy Heywood occupied a range of senior civil service roles, most recently as Principal Private Secretary to the Prime Minister (1999–2003). Prior to that, he had a variety of senior roles at HM Treasury including, Head of Securities and Markets Policy and Head of Corporate and Management Change, where he led the department';s Fundamental Expenditure Review in the mid 1990s. He also served as Principal Private Secretary to Chancellors Norman Lamont and Kenneth Clarke. This new role sees him assume overall responsibility for domestic policy and strategy including the domestic Cabinet Secretariat, strategy, social exclusion and other key areas of domestic policy.

Simon McDonald

Simon McDonald, 46, is currently Director, Iraq at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, having previously been HM Ambassador to Israel. Prior to that he was Principal Private Secretary to the Foreign Secretary, and before that held a number of posts in London and abroad including Washington and Riyadh, having joined the FCO in 1982. He will become the Senior Foreign Policy to the Prime Minister on foreign and defence issues.

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