Gareth Davies has been named as the new Home Office permanent secretary.
Davies, who has been perm sec at the Department for Business and Trade since its creation in 2023, will take up the Home Office top job on 6 April, with arrangements for his replacement at DBT to be announced shortly.
Dame Antonia Romeo, who left the Home Office perm sec role last month to become cabinet secretary, has appointed Davies to the job with the approval of the prime minister, Keir Starmer.
Davies, who started his career in the private sector and has worked across Europe and south east Asia, said it is “an honour” to be appointed to “one of the great offices of state”.
“There’s no more important agenda in government than keeping the country safe and secure,” he added.
“I’m looking forward to working with the amazing team of civil servants to deliver the home secretary’s priorities and build a department that is even more innovative and productive.”
Davies also thanked “the incredible team” at DBT and said “they should be very proud of the difference they make to the lives of families and communities across our country”.
Davies took on the DBT leadership role in February 2023 after only a month in the top job at the Department for International Trade when a major reorganisation of government departments by then-PM Rishi Sunak brought the business and trade portfolios together.
Helping to set up the department, he has led DBT during a three-year period where it has secured major trade deals including with India and the United States, hosted the International Investment Summit, launched the government’s Industrial Strategy, and passed the Employment Rights Act.
Before leading DIT and DBT, Davies held roles including second perm sec at the Department for Transport; director general in the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy; and head of the Prime Minister’s Strategy Unit.
Romeo said Davies is a “brilliant permanent secretary who brings a wealth of experience of delivery and innovation from the public and private sectors”.
“The Home Office is charged with delivery of some of the government’s highest priorities, and Gareth is strongly suited to grip delivery and productivity in support of the home secretary and the prime minister,” she said.
She also thanked Simon Ridley for his “strong leadership of the department” as interim perm sec over the last few weeks.
Home secretary Shabana Mahmood said Davies brings “decades of experience in senior government and private sector roles, and a strong record of delivery supporting British trade and industry and transforming departments”.
She added: “I look forward to working with Gareth as we drive forward the most significant reforms to policing and migration in generations, and deliver our mission to keep the British public safe and restore order to our borders."
She also thanked Romeo "for her exceptional leadership of the department" from April 2025 to February 2026 and Ridley "for his valuable counsel" while serving as acting perm sec for the last month.
The appointment has been agreed by first civil service commissioner Gisela Stuart.