Cabinet Office

70Whitehall, Westminster
Department overview
Formed	December 1916; 108 years ago (1916-12)
Preceding Department	Committee of Imperial Defence
Jurisdiction	Government of the United Kingdom
Headquarters	70Whitehall, London, United Kingdom 51°30′13″N0°7′36″W / 51.50361°N 0.12667°W /51.50361; -0.12667
Employees	10,220 (as of December 2021[update])[1]
Annual budget	£2.1 billion (current) & £400 million (capital) for 2011–12[2]
Minister responsible	The Rt Hon.Sir Keir Starmer,Prime Minister The Rt Hon.Darren Jones,Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster
Department executives	Sir Chris Wormald,Cabinet Secretary andHead of the Civil Service Cat Little,Cabinet Office Permanent Secretary andChief Operating Officer of theCivil Service Clara Swinson, SecondPermanent Secretary in the Cabinet Office, Head of Mission Delivery Unit Michael Ellam, SecondPermanent Secretary in the Cabinet Office,European Union and International Economic Affairs Sarah Harrison,Chief Operating Officer for the Cabinet Office Darren Tierney, Director General, Propriety and Constitution Group
Child agencies	Crown Commercial Service Government Property Agency
Website	gov.uk/cabinet-office

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TheCabinet Office is aministerial department of theGovernment of the United Kingdom. It is responsible for supporting theprime minister andCabinet.^[3] It is composed of various units that supportCabinet committees and coordinate the delivery of government objectives via other departments. As of December 2021,^[update] it had more than 10,200 staff, mostlycivil servants, some of whom work inWhitehall. Staff working in thePrime Minister's Office are part of the Cabinet Office.

The Cabinet Office's core functions are:^[4]

• Supporting collective government, helping to ensure the effective development, coordination, and implementation of policy;
• Supporting the National Security Council and the Joint Intelligence Organisation, coordinating the government's response to crises, and managing the UK's cyber security;
• Promoting efficiency and reform across government through innovation, transparency, better procurement, and project management, transforming the delivery of services, and improving the capability of the Civil Service;
• Political and constitutional reform

The Cabinet Office has responsibility for the following at theUK national level:

• theHome Civil Service
• theIndependent Parliamentary Standards Authority
• the GovernmentCommercial Function^[5] and the Government Commercial Organisation.^[6]
• the government's digital, data, and technology (DDaT) function is through theGovernment Digital Service^[7]

The department was formed in December 1916 from the secretariat of theCommittee of Imperial Defence^[8] underSir Maurice Hankey, the firstCabinet Secretary.

Traditionally the most important part of the Cabinet Office's role was facilitatingcollective decision-making by the Cabinet, through running and supporting Cabinet-level committees. This is still its principal role, but since the absorption of some of the functions ofthe Civil Service Department in 1981 the Cabinet Office has also helped to ensure that a wide range of Ministerial priorities are taken forward across Whitehall.

It also contains miscellaneous units that do not sit well in other departments. For example:

• The Historical Section was founded in 1906 as part of the Committee for Imperial Defence and is concerned withOfficial Histories.^[9]
• TheJoint Intelligence Committee was founded in 1936 and transferred to the department in 1957. It deals with intelligence assessments and directing the national intelligence organisations of the UK.
• The Ceremonial Branch was founded in 1937 and transferred to the department in 1981. It was originally concerned with all ceremonial functions of state, but today it handleshonours and appointments.

In modern times the Cabinet Office often takes on responsibility for areas of policy which are the priority of the Government of the time. The units that administer these areas migrate in and out of the Cabinet Office as government priorities (and governments) change.

Minister	Portrait	Office	Portfolio
The Rt Hon.Sir Keir StarmerKCB KC MP		Prime Minister First Lord of the Treasury Minister for the Civil Service	Head of government; oversees the operation of the Civil Service and government agencies; appoints members of the government; he is the principal government figure in the House of Commons.
The Rt Hon.Darren JonesMP		Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster Minister for Intergovernmental Relations Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister (Minister of State)	The Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster administers the estates and rents of the Duchy of Lancaster, and is a member of the Cabinet. After the Prime Minister, they are the most senior minister in the Cabinet Office, responsible for supporting delivery of Government’s priorities; Oversight of all Cabinet Office policy; National security, resilience, and civil contingencies; Propriety and ethics; Public appointments; Major events policy.[10] Additionally as Minister for Intergovernmental Relations leads coordination with the devolved administrations on the Prime Minister’s behalf, working closely with the Territorial Offices, to make sure that across government work is being done on behalf of the entire United Kingdom.[11] Furthermore, as Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister responsible for overseeing work across Government to support the delivery of the Prime Minister’s priorities and the Government’s Plan for Change.[12]
The Rt Hon.Nick Thomas-SymondsMP FRHistS		Minister for the Cabinet Office Paymaster General	Delivery of the government's efficiency programme; Civil Service Modernisation and Reform; Places for growth programme; Cabinet Office business planning and performance; Infected Blood Inquiry; Public bodies reform programme; Spend controls reform; Oversight of the cross-cutting functions and government functional strategy. Additionally supports the Deputy Prime Minister on: Driving delivery of the government's priorities;Civil contingencies and resilience.[13]
Anna TurleyMP		Minister of State without Portfolio	Supporting DPM on driving delivery of Government's priorities; Supporting DPM and MCO on ensuring efficiency and value for money in Government policy; Supporting DPM and MCO on ensuring efficiency and value for money in Government delivery; Ensuring effective communication of Government's priorities; Public Bodies reform programme (supporting MCO); Public appointments outreach (supporting DPM and BNR).[14]
MajorDan JarvisMBE MP		Minister of State in the Cabinet Office
Satvir KaurMP		Parliamentary Secretary
Josh SimonsMP		Parliamentary Secretary
Chris WardMP		Parliamentary Secretary

Leaders of theHouses ofCommons andLords, supported by the Cabinet Office, are as follows:

Minister	Portrait	Office	Portfolio
The Rt Hon.Sir Alan Campbell MP		Leader of the House of Commons Lord President of the Council	The Government's Legislative Programme, chairing the Cabinet Committee; Managing and announcing the business of the House of Commons weekly and facilitating motions and debate in the Chamber, particularly on House business; Government's representative in the House (sitting on the House of Commons Commission, Public Accounts Commission, and the Speaker's Committees on the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority); House of Commons representative in Government; Parliamentary reform and policy; Ministerial responsibility for the Privy Council Office.
The Rt Hon.The Baroness Smith of Basildon PC		Leader of the House of Lords Lord Privy Seal	Management and delivery of the Government's legislative programme (through the House of Lords) and facilitating the passage of individual bills; Leading the House (in the Chamber and as a key member of domestic committees to do with procedure, conduct, and the internal governance of the House); Issues connected to the House of Lords and its governance; Speaking for the Government in the Chamber on a range of issues, including repeating in the House of Lords statements made to the Commons by the Prime Minister; Ceremonial and other duties as the Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal.
The Rt Hon.The Lord Collins of Highbury		Deputy Leader of the House of Lords	The Deputy Leader of the House of Lords supports the House of Lords in its job of questioning government ministers, improving legislation and debating topics of national significance.

The Cabinet Office's most senior civil servants are as follows, as of February 2025:^[15]

Name	Portrait	Position	Term start
SirChris WormaldKCB[16]		Cabinet Secretary Head of the Home Civil Service	16 December 2024; 11 months ago (2024-12-16)
Cat LittleCB[17]		Permanent Secretary to the Cabinet Office Chief Operating Officer of the Home Civil Service	1 April 2024; 19 months ago (2024-04-01)
Sarah Harrison[18]		Chief Operating Officer for the Cabinet Office	July 2020; 5 years ago (2020-07)
Simon Baugh[19]		Chief Executive of Government Communications	October 2021; 4 years ago (2021-10)
Richard Hornby[20]		Chief Financial Officer and Director of Assurance, Finance and Controls, Cabinet Office	February 2020; 5 years ago (2020-02)
Vincent Devine[21]		Government Chief Security Officer	December 2021; 3 years ago (2021-12)
Kathryn Al-Shemmeri[22]		Chief People Officer, Cabinet Office	September 2022; 3 years ago (2022-09)
Darren Tierney[23]		Director General, Propriety and Constitution Group	March 2021; 4 years ago (2021-03)
Jonathan Powell[24]		National Security Adviser	2 December 2024; 11 months ago (2024-12-02)
Madeleine AlessandriCMG[25]		Chair of the Joint Intelligence Committee	1 July 2023; 2 years ago (2023-07-01)
Clara Swinson[26]		Second Permanent Secretary in the Cabinet Office, Head of Mission Delivery Unit	September 2024; 1 year ago (2024-09)
Michael Ellam		Second Permanent Secretary in the Cabinet Office, European Union and International Economic Affairs	13 January 2025; 10 months ago (2025-01-13)

The Cabinet Office also supports the work of theWhips Offices of the House of Lords and House of Commons.

TheParliamentary Private Secretary to the Cabinet Office supports the work of ministers.

Cabinet committees have two key purposes:^[27]

• To relieve the burden on the Cabinet by dealing with business that does not need to be discussed at full Cabinet. Appeals to the Cabinet should be infrequent, and Ministers chairing Cabinet Committees should exercise discretion in advising the prime minister whether to allow them.
• To support the principle of collective responsibility by ensuring that, even though a question may never reach the Cabinet itself, it will be fully considered. In this way, the final judgement is sufficiently authoritative that Government as a whole can be expected to accept responsibility for it. In this sense, Cabinet Committee decisions have the same authority as Cabinet decisions.

The main building of the Cabinet Office is at 70Whitehall, adjacent toDowning Street. The building connects three historically distinct properties, as well as the remains ofHenry VIII's 1530tennis courts, part of thePalace of Whitehall, which can be seen within the building. The Whitehall frontage was designed by SirJohn Soane and completed by SirCharles Barry between 1845 and 1847 as the Treasury Buildings. Immediately to the west Dorset House (1700) connects the front of the building toWilliam Kent's Treasury (1733–36), which faces out ontoHorse Guards Parade. The latter is built over the site of the Cockpit, used forcock fighting in the Tudor period, and subsequently as atheatre. In the early 1960s the buildings were restored and many of the Tudor remains were exposed and repaired. Significant renovations between 2010 and 2016 converted many of the floors to open plan and created new office space. TheCabinet Office Briefing Rooms are located on this site.

The department occupies other buildings in Whitehall and the surrounding area, including part of theGovernment Offices Great George Street at 1 Horse Guards, as well as sites in other parts of the country.

• British Civil Service
• Cabinet Office Briefing Rooms
• Prime Minister's Strategy Unit
• Social Exclusion Task Force
• United Kingdom budget

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