Rishi Sunak finally appointed a new ethics adviser today as he handed over to Historic England chairman and investment banker Sir Laurie Magnus.
The Prime Minister had previously promised to fill the vacant position of Independent Adviser on Ministers’ Interests as “one of the first things” he did upon entering No 10.
But it took him almost two months to find someone who would take the job.
Despite eventually taking the job, Sunak was criticized this afternoon for failing to strengthen Sir Laurie’s powers in the role.
Sir Laurie Magnus, chairman of Historic England and an investment banker, is the prime minister’s new ethics adviser.
Under the terms of his appointment, Sir Laurie will still not be able to launch his own investigations into ministerial irregularities without prior approval from the Prime Minister.
And Sunak will remain the “ultimate judge” on whether a minister should be sacked, even if the independent adviser determines they have broken the rules.
The role had been vacant since Lord Geidt resigned as Boris Johnson’s ethics adviser in June, following a row over Partygate and repeated requests for him to sign off on breaches of international law.
He was the second ethics adviser to resign while Johnson was prime minister.
Sir Alex Allan previously resigned in 2020 after his finding that then-Home Secretary Priti Patel had bullied staff was overturned.
During the almost two months it took to appoint a new ethics adviser, Sunak faced a series of controversies, including the re-election of Suella Braverman as home secretary.
It came just six days after she was forced to resign from the same position for breaching ministerial rules.
The Prime Minister has also seen Sir Gavin Williamson resign following accusations of “bullying”.
And he has been forced to order an independent inquiry into Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab’s conduct towards officials amid a series of official complaints.
Rishi Sunak had previously promised to take up the role of Independent Adviser on Ministers’ Interests as “one of the first things” he did upon entering No 10.
In a letter to Sir Laurie, published by Downing Street, Sunak said it had been a “priority” for him to appoint a new adviser.
He told Sir Laurie that he was “confident that you will carry out your role with distinction, in the best traditions of the public service”.
“I have made it clear that I expect the Government I lead to have integrity, professionalism and accountability at all levels,” the Prime Minister added.
Sir Laurie is chairman of Historic England, trustee of English Heritage and senior adviser to investment banking firm Evercore.
He was awarded a CBE in the most recent New Year’s Honors list for his services to heritage.
Sir Laurie will hold the position for the next five years and will have a team of officials working under him.
In his response to Mr Sunak, Sir Laurie told the Prime Minister: ‘I will endeavor to carry out the important responsibilities of this role with fairness and integrity, in a way that inspires the confidence of ministers, Parliament and the public.
‘I consider maintaining that trust to be a critically important element of governance in this country. “It is an honor to be asked to serve in this role and an important responsibility.”
Sir Laurie promised to provide Mr Sunak with an annual report by May next year and update ministers’ register of interests “well before” then.
The list of ministers’ interests details any financial interests or non-governmental roles of all government ministers or relevant interests of their spouses, partners or close relatives.
It has not been updated since May this year, since then there have been a host of new ministerial appointments.
Lord Geidt resigned as Boris Johnson’s ethics adviser in June, following a row over Partygate and repeated calls for him to approve breaches of international law.
Labor deputy leader Angela Rayner accused the prime minister of choosing to “preserve the rotten ethics regime he inherited” after he failed to bolster Sir Laurie’s powers.
Downing Street confirmed that Sir Laurie will serve under the same terms of reference as Lord Geidt.
This sparked an immediate reaction from union and Labor leaders.
Dave Penman, general secretary of the FDA union, which represents senior civil servants, accused Sunak of overseeing “the same old problems” despite the new appointment.
“Rishi Sunak has ignored calls from the Public Life Standards Committee to allow independent investigations,” he said.
‘The Prime Minister retains the right to veto investigations into his minister’s conduct and is the sole arbiter of the ministerial code, including potential sanctions. How will this give public officials the confidence to come forward?
“Integrity is just a meaningless word without action.”
Labor deputy leader Angela Rayner said: “After months of dithering and delaying, Rishi Sunak has chosen to preserve the rotten ethics regime he inherited from his predecessors and which saw the two previous ethics watchdogs withdraw.”
“By ignoring the Committee on Standards in Public Life and refusing to grant his ethics adviser genuine independence, this weak Prime Minister is failing to live up to the integrity he promised and has instead installed another toothless watchdog.”
As well as appointing Sir Laurie, Sunak today republished the ministerial code, which is the list of rules that Government appointees are expected to uphold.
Mr Sunak wrote in the foreword: ‘I know that ministers enter government because they believe in public service.
‘They work hard because they want to make a difference for others.
‘They do their jobs knowing that serving is an incredible privilege. In everything we do, we must keep those thoughts at the forefront to earn the trust of the British people.”
It was noted that, despite the allegations against Sir Gavin and Raab, Sunak made no specific mention of bullying in his foreword, as Johnson had done in an earlier version published in May.
“There should be no intimidation or harassment,” the now former prime minister had written in his own foreword.