U.K.’s Top Civil Servant Steps Down Amid Reports of Rift

(Bloomberg) -- Britain’s most senior civil servant announced he is stepping down in September, ending speculation over his future.

The departure of Mark Sedwill as cabinet secretary, national security adviser and head of the civil service follows reports of tensions with Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s senior aide Dominic Cummings, who has been pressing for a wider shake-up of the civil service.

Sedwill is being replaced as national security adviser by David Frost, Britain’s chief Brexit negotiator.

In his letter to Johnson, Sedwill said it was right to be going now that the acute phase of the Covid-19 crisis was over.

“The government’s focus is now shifting to domestic and global recovery and renewal,” he wrote.

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