Ex-top official Robbins reaches settlement with government over sacking
Summary
Sir Olly Robbins, the former top civil servant in the UK Foreign Office, has reached a settlement with the government after being dismissed. He was sacked because of issues around the security clearance given to Lord Mandelson for the role of UK ambassador to the US.Key Facts
- Sir Olly Robbins was removed from his position by Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer in April 2026.
- The dismissal followed concerns about how Lord Mandelson was cleared to be ambassador to the US despite vetting warnings.
- Lord Mandelson was appointed in December 2024 and started in February 2025 but was dismissed seven months later after more troubling information surfaced.
- Sir Olly challenged his sacking through a legal process called a judicial review.
- An out-of-court settlement was reached, but the amount paid to Sir Olly was not disclosed.
- The FDA union said Sir Olly was unfairly blamed to cover mistakes made by the prime minister.
- The government praised Sir Olly’s long career but did not comment further on the settlement.
- Sir Olly said government vetting procedures must stay confidential and that he was only given verbal information about the vetting concerns.
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