New Second Permanent Secretary at the MOD

New Second Permanent Secretary at the MOD

A Defence Policy and Business news article
2 Jul 08
The Ministry of Defence has announced today, Wednesday 2 July 2008, that Ursula Brennan has been selected to be the next Second Permanent Secretary, succeeding Ian Andrews. She will take up her appointment in the autumn.

Ursula is currently Director General Corporate Performance at the Ministry of Justice, where she has been responsible for finance, human resources, IT, change management, strategy, planning and analysis. Prior to that, she has undertaken a range of senior appointments at the Departments for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Work and Pensions and Social Security.

Together with the Vice Chief of the Defence Staff, the Second Permanent Secretary acts as joint Chief Operating Officer for Defence, ensuring that strategic decisions are implemented and managing performance across the board.

The post-holder reports to the Permanent Secretary, chairs the Defence Environment and Safety Board and is a member of the Defence Council and its Service Boards, the Defence Ministerial Committee, the Service Executive Committees and the Investment Approvals Board.

In addition to these responsibilities, the Second Permanent Secretary is responsible for defining and delivering requirements for corporate support services and is the Top Level Budget holder for the Central TLB (Top Level Budget). Top Level Budgets are the largest organisational units within the Ministry of Defence and Armed Forces. Examples include the three Single Services, Defence Equipment and Support and Defence Estates. The Central TLB covers the MOD Head Office, the Defence Intelligence Staff and corporate services such as civilian personnel.

Permanent Secretary Bill Jeffrey said:

"I am delighted that Ursula will be joining the Department. She will bring an exceptionally strong combination of policy development, change management and operational delivery experience to the role, and, as a member of the Defence Board and joint Chief Operating Officer, will play a key part in helping the Department address the challenges we face."

This appointment was approved by the Prime Minister following a cross-Whitehall competition. The date of appointment will be announced in due course.