Prime Minister Keir Starmer has cancelled plans to appoint one of Britain’s most senior officials as national security adviser, but senior officials fear the move is designed to pave the way for a more politically loyal candidate.
Officials said the chancellor reversed a decision made in April by his predecessor Rishi Sunak to appoint Gwyn Jenkins, who was then deputy commander of the armed forces, to the government’s top security post.
Jenkins will be allowed to reapply for the post, but some in Whitehall see Starmer’s decision as a new sign of his determination to promote his allies to the civil service’s most senior positions.
One official said: “This appears to be another power grab by Keir Starmer and (his chief of staff) Sue Gray. The process for Ms Jenkins’ appointment was carried out with full transparency and there is no justification for going through it again.”
Another person involved in Jenkins’ original appointment called Starmer’s decision a “mistake”, adding that he was “absolutely brilliant”.
A person familiar with the decision said it was a personal decision by Starmer, not Mr Gray, and Downing Street said it would “provide an update in due course”.
Labour ministers are already under pressure to give access to many jobs and political allies.
They include Ian Caulfield, a Labour donor who was appointed interim director-general of the Treasury, Waheed Ali, a donor who was given a No. 10 pass, and Jess Sargent, who once worked for a Labour think tank but now holds a senior role in the Cabinet Office.
Mr Caulfield has left his paid role and now works as an unpaid adviser, while Labour insiders say Sir Aly no longer has a Downing Street pass – although he did organise garden parties for other donors while he worked there.
The Conservative party has written to Cabinet Secretary Simon Case demanding he reveal who issued Ali’s pass. Downing Street said it does not comment on individual appointments.
Last week Hannah White, director of the Institute for Government, criticised Labour’s approach to senior appointments, saying it would be a mistake to “short-sightedly treat recruitment practices that are designed to ensure merit-based appointments and safeguard impartiality”.
Jenkins was set to replace outgoing national security adviser Tim Barrow, who was in the process of being appointed as British ambassador to Washington.
Mr Barrow’s appointment has been cancelled and Mr Starmer is preparing to appoint Labour stalwarts such as Peter Mandelson and David Miliband in his place.
But the prime minister recognises that a victory for Donald Trump could make it harder for Labour diplomats to operate in Washington, and so he intends to wait until after the US presidential election in November before making a final decision.
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However, unlike Barrow, Jenkins had completed the appointment process and had been nominated by Sunak to be the next national security adviser.
The four-star general served in Northern Ireland and Afghanistan before becoming a military adviser to then Prime Minister David Cameron and then deputy national security adviser. He is due to be appointed deputy chief of the defence staff and commander of the Royal Marines in 2022.
He has also courted controversy during his time in the military – last year the BBC reported that Jenkins had locked evidence of extrajudicial killings by SAS officers in Afghanistan in a safe rather than handing it over to military police.
Announcing Jenkins as national security adviser four months ago, Sunak said: “General Jenkins has had a distinguished career both in the military and at the forefront of government and I am confident he will make an exceptional contribution to this important role – advancing the UK’s interests and protecting our national security around the world.”
Cabinet Secretary Case said Jenkins was “perfectly placed to lead the UK’s national security system and represent Britain’s interests overseas at this challenging time for global security.”
“I am honoured to be appointed to this important role and to return to Cabinet Office at a crucial time for national security,” Jenkins said at the time.
Some in the government said Jenkins had been told his appointment was temporary, but the official statement did not say so. Jenkins did not respond to requests for comment.
