Christopher Wormald, the former Cabinet Secretary removed from office by Prime Minister Keir Starmer in February, has been appointed to the House of Lords where he will sit as a crossbench peer. The appointment came days after Cabinet Office accounts revealed he received a record £860,000 severance package for his departure, significantly more than previous civil service payoffs and raising questions about value for money.

The £860,000 consisted of £332,897 in contractual compensation and £526,598 in additional severance. Civil service officials were sufficiently concerned about whether the payout represented good use of taxpayer money that they asked Starmer to issue a formal ministerial direction to proceed with the payment. Wormald, one of the shortest-serving Cabinet Secretaries, has also accumulated a £2.7 million pension pot which will provide him with an estimated £130,000-£135,000 annually upon retirement, whilst his House of Lords attendance allows him to claim £390 per day tax-free.