Ex-top civil servant Sir Simon McDonald says Boris Johnson was worst PM he worked under
The former head of the diplomatic service has said Boris Johnson was the worst prime minister he worked under.
Sir Simon McDonald served under seven prime ministers, from Margaret Thatcher to Mr Johnson, as a diplomat and, from 2015 to 2021, as permanent under-secretary to the Foreign Office and head of the diplomatic service.
A civil servant for nearly four decades, Sir Simon has had a unique insight into the workings of government and after resigning last year is now a cross-bench peer in the House of Lords.
He spoke to the Beth Rigby Interviews… programme about the PMs he worked with and the importance of staying neutral as a civil servant.
Sir Simon, whose book Leadership: Lessons from a Life in Diplomacy is published next week, worked closely with Mrs Thatcher, John Major, Tony Blair, Gordon Brown, David Cameron, Theresa May and Mr Johnson.
“Thatcher was the best and Johnson was the worst,” he said.
And if he had to include Liz Truss, then “she was a worse prime minister than Boris Johnson” while Rishi Sunak is “methodical and promising”.
Sir Simon McDonald said Boris Johnson knew about the Chris Pincher allegations
Johnson was ‘charismatic but chaotic’
Sir Simon, who is now the master of Christ’s College, Cambridge, said Mr Johnson, on a personal level, was “always charming to deal with, he was humorous, he was kind, he was the foreign secretary I worked with who had the most time for the people in his office”.
“And this is a real mark of a character. But what you need to be an effective prime minister is different. Being prime minister is one of the toughest jobs in the world,” he said.
“He is charismatic but chaotic.
“He liked to have multiple opinions swirling around him, the people proposing those ideas never really knew whose was in the lead – sometimes the decision wasn’t clear and sometimes the decision was reversed.
“There was too much swirl, and in the end, the system responds to clearer directions.
“One of the most disconcerting things was to see him arrive at a meeting, pretending to be less well briefed than he actually was. But that was part of his character.”
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The downfall of Boris Johnson
In July this year, Sir Simon took the unusual decision, for a former civil servant, to tweet out a letter to the standards commissioner saying Number 10 “are still not telling the truth” about Mr Johnson not knowing about previous sexual assault allegations against Conservative MP Chris Pincher.
Asked if Mr Johnson was told about the allegations against Mr Pincher, the subsequent investigation and the outcome, Sir Simon said he was informed when he was foreign secretary and again when he was prime minister.
Sir Simon’s tweet put Mr Johnson’s premiership in peril, with the row over Mr Pincher leading to the former PM’s exit from office.
He said he did not think his letter would have such an impact and admitted the backlash from the government was “unpleasant” but not as bad as what the victims of Mr Pincher had experienced.
“I spoke for a couple of reasons. First of all, I’d left the civil service and am now a member of the House of Lords. I am part of the legislature, so I have additional duties,” he said.
“Second, as the story developed, it seemed that nobody was paying attention to the previous victims. And there were victims.
“And I thought they should not be airbrushed, but what they had endured should be remembered.
“I’d written the letter on Monday evening, my wife made me sleep on it and as we were going to sleep I said ‘do you think anybody will notice?'”
Mr Pincher, a former deputy chief whip, denies all allegations of sexual misconduct.
Sir Simon said Mr Johnson was ‘charismatic but chaotic’
‘My letter was the final straw’
A former minister then told a newspaper Sir Simon and Mr Johnson “never saw eye to eye” as the civil servant was a Remainer, implying he had an ulterior motive.
“It was unpleasant but much less unpleasant than what the victims of the various Pincher scandals had undergone. And it was wrong. I knew it was wrong,” Sir Simon said.
He added that Mr Johnson knew he was a Remainer but denied pushing those views as he strongly believed his job was “to make the best of the exit, that is what civil servants do, no matter the government, even when they disagree”.
Despite initially questioning whether his letter would have any impact, Sir Simon added: “I accept that mine was the final straw that made it onto the Johnson camel’s back first.”
When Sir Simon stepped down as head of the diplomatic service early, there was speculation it was because he was against the merger of the Foreign Office with the Department for International Development.
But he denied that was the case, saying: “I supported the merger very, very strongly.”
Thatcher to Johnson
Sir Simon said all the PMs he has served under were “good at some things and weak at other things” – and “nearly all look better in the rear view mirror”.
“Margaret Thatcher was a very difficult prickly character for the system, but who had a clarity and a sense of purpose and a sense of galvanising the system which looks to have been one of our most effective prime ministers in 300 years,” he said.
He said John Major looked “beleaguered at the time” but “was one of the most methodical men I’ve ever seen”.
Tony Blair was “the best at communicating but some of his biggest policy calls were just wrong,” he said.
He said he does not think Mr Blair lied when he said there were weapons of mass destruction in Iraq but “the intelligence picture comprehensively misled him” and he “believed what he was saying”.
“It’s very, very difficult as a human being to admit wrong decisions,” Sir Simon added about Mr Blair not admitting he was wrong.
He said Gordon Brown was “the best of finance but quite a difficult communicator” who “wore his anxieties on his face” which was not helpful when leading people “through very difficult time”.
David Cameron, Sir Simon said, “looked the most of ease in the job and was in some ways the easiest to work for”.
Theresa May was also a “methodical person but with a very difficult job that she didn’t really sympathise with”.
World
Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh being forced to fight for same military accused of genocide against their people
Cox’s Bazar in Bangladesh is a sprawling mass of humanity.Â
It’s a sea of makeshift bamboo shelters, home to more than one million Rohingya refugees – a mainly Muslim minority from Rakhine state in Myanmar.
Some 700,000 fled their homeland back in 2017 – after the Myanmar military massacred thousands.
The army was accused of genocide by the United Nations.
The Rohingya refugees didn’t escape danger though.
Right now, violence is at its worst levels in the camps since 2017 and Rohingya people face a particularly cruel new threat – they’re being forced back to fight for the same Myanmar military accused of trying to wipe out their people.
A child at the refugee camp in Cox’s Bazar
Militant groups are recruiting Rohingya men in the camps, some at gunpoint, and taking them back to Myanmar to fight for a force that’s losing ground.
Jaker is just 19.
We’ve changed his name to protect his identity.
He says he was abducted at gunpoint last year by a group of nine men in Cox’s.
They tied his hands with rope he says and took him to the border where he was taken by boat with three other men to fight for the Myanmar military.
“It was heartbreaking,” he told me. “They targeted poor children. The children of wealthy families only avoided it by paying money.”
And he says the impact has been deadly.
“Many of our Rohingya boys, who were taken by force from the camps, were killed in battle.”
Jaker speaks to Sky’s Cordelia Lynch
An aerial view of the refugee camp in Cox’s Bazar
The situation in Cox’s is desperate.
People are disillusioned by poverty, violence and the plight of their own people and the civil war they ran from is getting worse.
In Rakhine, just across the border, there’s been a big shift in dynamics.
The Arakan Army (AA), an ethnic armed group has all but taken control of the state from the ruling military junta.
Both the military and the AA are accused of committing atrocities against Rohingya Muslims.
And whilst some Rohingya claim they’re being forced into the fray – dragged back to Myanmar from Bangladesh, others are willing to go.
Read more from Sky News:
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Teknaf in Cox’s Bazar – where refugees arrive from Myanmar after crossing the Naf River
Some are so aggrieved with the AA, they’re willing to support their former persecutors.
Abu Zar is one of those willing to take up arms.
But not for the military or AA, he says.
Everyone praying in the mosque with him is prepared to go back to protect their own cause he says – not anyone else’s.
“We want to fight for our rights because we have been demanding justice for a long time. But the situation has become unbearable,” he tells me.
Abu Zar has said he is willing to take up arms for his own cause
It’s estimated between 3,000 and 5,000 Rohingya have joined armed groups from this camp.
But the fight they are joining has become increasingly bloody.
In a cramped shelter, we meet Safura.
Safura came under fire as she fled Myanmar
Safura’s son Aman had his foot blown off
Five days ago she managed to get out of Myanmar but she had to be carried part of the way.
Her legs are riddled with bullet wounds and the pain is severe.
Her son, Aman, who lies on the floor next to her, has had his foot blown off.
They were injured she said, during an attack on her family home in the middle of the night.
“They entered our house and shot all my family members. My husband and mother-in-law were killed on the spot.”
The military denies forcing Rohingya to the battlefield. But the camps tell a different story- one of surging violence and vulnerability.
US President Donald Trump has told Gazans to hand over Israeli hostages or “you are dead”.
The threat, made over social media, came hours after the White House confirmed that US officials had broken with tradition to hold direct talks with Hamas.
The US has previously avoided direct contact with the group owing to Washington’s longstanding position not to negotiate with terrorists – with Hamas having been designated as a terrorist group in the US since 1997.
In a press conference on Wednesday, White House press secretary Ms Keavitt said there had been “ongoing talks and discussions” between the US officials and Hamas.
File pic: AP
But she would not be drawn on the substance of the talks – taking place in Doha, Qatar – between US officials and Hamas, but said Israel had been consulted.
Ms Leavitt continued: “Dialogue and talking to people around the world to do what’s in the best interest of the American people, is something that the president has proven is what he believes is a good faith, effort to do what’s right for the American people.”
There are “American lives at stake,” she added.
Adam Boehler, Mr Trump’s pick to be special envoy for hostage affairs, participated in the direct talks with Hamas.
A spokesperson for Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said Israel had “expressed to the United States its position regarding direct talks with Hamas”.
Hours later, Mr Trump warned Hamas to hand over Israeli hostages or “it’s over for you” – adding: “This is your last warning”.
Hamas militants on the day of a hostage handover in Gaza in February. Pic: Reuters
On his Truth Social platform, Mr Trump wrote: “Release all of the hostages now, not later, and immediately return all of the dead bodies of the people you murdered or it is over for you.
“Only sick and twisted people keep bodies and you are sick and twisted. I am sending Israel everything it needs to finish the job, not a single Hamas member will be safe if you don’t do as I say.”
Mr Trump met with freed Israeli hostages on Wednesday, something he referenced in his social media post, before adding: “This is your last warning. For the leadership of Hamas, now is the time to leave Gaza, while you still have a chance.
“Also, to the people of Gaza, a beautiful future awaits, but not if you hold hostages. If you do, you are dead. Make a smart decision. Release the hostages now, or there will be hell to pay later.”
Israel estimates about 24 living hostages, including American citizen Edan Alexander, and the bodies of at least 35 others, are still believed to be in Gaza.
Donald Trump with Benjamin Netanyahu in February. Pic: Reuters
The US has a long-held policy of not negotiating with terrorists – which it is breaking with these talks as Hamas has been designated a foreign terrorist organisation by the US government’s National Counterterrorism Center since 1997.
The discussions come as a fragile Israel-Hamas ceasefire continues to hold, but its future is uncertain.
Palestinians amid the rubble in the southern Gaza strip. Pic: Reuters
Mr Trump has signalled he has no intention of pushing the Israeli prime minister away from a return to combat if Hamas does not agree to terms of a new ceasefire proposal – which, Israel says, has been drafted by US Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff.
The new plan would require Hamas to release half its remaining hostages – the group’s main bargaining chip – in exchange for a ceasefire extension and a promise to negotiate a lasting truce.
Read more:
The competing plans for rebuilding Gaza
Freed Israeli hostage details captivity
Israel has made no mention of releasing more Palestinian prisoners, a key component of the first phase.
Fighting in Gaza has been halted since 19 January.
Hamas has exchanged 33 Israeli and five Thai hostages for some 2,000 Palestinian prisoners and detainees.
Donald Trump has admitted his tariffs on major trading partners will cause “a little disturbance” – as China said it was “ready” for “any type of war” with the US.
The US president made his comments in an address to Congress, hours after the levies on imports came into effect.
Producers in Mexico and Canada have been hit with a 25% tax on items they export to the US, while a 20% tariff has been applied to Chinese imports.
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Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping. The US president has admitted his tariffs will cause ‘a little disturbance’ – as China responds. Pic: Reuters/AP
Stock markets, which Mr Trump is said to pay close attention to, slid on the tariffs news.
Exporters in the affected countries as well as businesses in the US and economists have raised concerns about the potential price-raising impact of the tariffs.
Making imports more expensive will likely make goods more expensive and could push prices up across the board.
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Trump’s Congress speech unwrapped
Concern over threat to interest rates
A cycle of high inflation could lead to interest rates being higher for longer in the US, the world’s largest economy, which could dampen economic activity.
A slowed US economy would have global consequences but even without a hit to the States, there are fears of a global trade war – in which countries add their own trade barriers in the form of tariffs.
The Chinese embassy in the US posted on X: “If war is what the US wants, be it a tariff war, a trade war or any other type of war, we’re ready to fight till the end.”
China imposes retaliatory tariffs
The president, however, said he was “just getting started” after 43 days into his second term.
China and Canada have retaliated with their own tariffs against the US.
From next week China will add its own 15% levy on a range of agricultural products such as chicken, wheat, corn and cotton.
An extra 10% will be added to soya beans, pork, beef, fruit, vegetables and dairy products imports.
The country has also raised additional complaints against the US with the World Trade Organisation (WTO).
Read more:
Beijing’s patience is running thin
‘Dumb’: Canadian PM criticises Trump over tariffs
Political division in US has never looked like this
Speaking to Sky News presenter Yalda Hakim the US former deputy national security advisor Matt Pottinger said Chinese president Xi Jinping was turning the Chinese economy “into a wartime economy”
“He’s preparing his economy for war so that it can withstand the shocks of war,” he said on The World with Richard Engel and Yalda Hakim podcast
“That means he’s willing to undergo massive inefficiencies in the economy. He’s willing to stockpile food that otherwise would flow easily and more cheaply in from foreign vessels.”
“He’s stockpiling copper and all kinds of inputs into the economy. He is making sure that the private sector is wholly aligned with his broad goals, which are about increasing the Chinese Communist Party’s control over the economy and creating a bigger, better defence industrial base,” Mr Pottinger said.
“He’s preparing for war.”
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Compromise ‘as early as Wednesday’?
Canada’s prime minister Justin Trudeau said his country was launching its own WTO challenge and described the US tariffs as a “dumb thing to do”.
He also warned the move by the Trump administration would impact American workplaces and add to inflation in the US.
Addressing the American public, he said: “We don’t want this… but your government has chosen to do this to you.”
Canada has announced the imposition of 25% tariffs on US imports worth C$30bn (£16.3bn).
But US commerce secretary Howard Lutnick struck a different note on tariffs and on Monday said the president will “probably” announce a compromise with Canada and Mexico as early as Wednesday.
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