Ethics Head Hired by Civil Service ‘in Breach of Its Own Ethics Rules’
23rd February 2026
The government’s head of propriety and ethics was appointed without external competition in apparent breach of government hiring rules, The Times can reveal.
Jobs in the “senior civil service” must be advertised openly and be subject to a competitive recruitment process under rules introduced by the previous government. The policy is designed to attract more talent and to avoid top mandarins being drawn from a small group of officials.
Ellen Atkinson, who previously served as the government’s head of major events, was appointed as the new director general, propriety, ethics and constitution, replacing Darren Tierney, who moved to run the Office for National Statistics last year.
While the appointment was not advertised, the rules allow for a minister to give written permission to circumvent the policy if circumstances require the role be filled immediately. No such permission was recorded, an FoI request by The Times reveals.
Britain under Labour is a good preview of what a future Democrat administration would look like.