The Department for Transport’s (DfT) rail executive director general Clare Moriarty will take up the position over the summer, according to a governemnt statement, and will replace Defra’s current permanent secretary Bronwyn Hill, who has been in the role since March 2011.
Moriarty is a qualified accountant and has previously worked in a number of government departments, including the Department of Health and the Ministry of Justice. She is also a board champion for gender at the DfT, and has a long standing interest in leadership, organisational development and change.
On her appointment, Moriarty said she is “thrilled” to take up the role and to work with environment secretary Liz Truss on “a fascinating agenda for the years ahead”.
She wished Hill “all the best for the future” and added she is “fortunate to have the opportunity to build on the work that Bronwyn has taken forward at Defra”.
On Moriarty’s appointment, Truss said: “I am looking forward to working with her on unleashing the potential of food and farming, nature and the countryside, on championing the environment, and protecting us from natural threats and hazards.
“I am particularly excited by the opportunity for Clare to build on her experience of innovation to lead the Department’s data revolution.”
Cabinet secretary Jeremy Heywood added: “ track record of leadership and delivering transformational change in the public sector make her an ideal choice for the role. I am very much looking forward to working with her.”
He also thanked Hill “for her dedicated public service over the past three decades” and called her “an exemplary public servant”.