Chris Wormald steps down ‘by mutual consent’ after a year in post with Antonia Romeo expected to succeed him

Keir Starmer’s attempt to shake up his top team after the disastrous Peter Mandelson scandal began on Thursday, when he forced out his most senior civil servant with a view to replacing him with Antonia Romeo.

The prime minister announced that Chris Wormald was stepping down “by mutual consent” after just over a year as cabinet secretary, with Romeo almost certain to succeed him as the first woman in the job.