Cabinet secretary Sir Chris Wormald – the UK’s most senior civil servant – is leaving No 10 in the wake of the recent Downing Street crisis after just over a year in the role.

In a statement, the Cabinet Office said the prime minister and the cabinet secretary has agreed that Sir Chris will stand down as the cabinet secretary and head of the civil service “by mutual agreement” from today.

Sir Chris said: “It has been an honour and a privilege to serve as a civil servant for the past 35 years, and a particular distinction to lead the service as cabinet secretary.

“I want to place on record my sincere thanks to the extraordinary civil servants, public servants, ministers, and advisers I have worked with. Our country is fortunate to have such dedicated individuals devoted to public service, and I wish them every success for the future.”

Sir Keir Starmer added: “I am very grateful to Sir Chris for his long and distinguished career of public service, spanning more than 35 years, and for the support that he has given me over the past year.

“I have agreed with him that he will step down as cabinet secretary today. I wish him the very best for the future.”

The responsibilities of the cabinet secretary job will be shared in the interim between three senior civil servants – Catherine Little, permanent secretary at the Cabinet Office, James Bowler, permanent secretary at the Treasury, and Dame Antonia Romeo, permanent secretary at the Home Office, and widely reported to the prime minister’s preferred candidate to take on the role permanently.

Sir Chris replaced Simon Case in the £200,000-a-year role on 16 December 2024.

He served as permanent secretary at the Department of Health and Social Care, advising the health secretary on policy and managing the budget from 2016 to December 2024 – all through the COVID pandemic.

There have been reports for months that Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer was unhappy with his performance in his Cabinet Office role, and his departure will not come as a surprise to many in Westminster.

This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly.

Please refresh the page for the fullest version.

You can receive breaking news alerts on a smartphone or tablet via the Sky News app. You can also follow us on WhatsApp and subscribe to our YouTube channel to keep up with the latest news.