Gove Sparks Row Over Tory Donor Appointment

Justice Secretary Michael Gove is facing accusations this weekend of undermining the impartiality of Whitehall by appointing a wealthy Conservative donor and a close personal ally to his department's board.

Sky News has learnt that Mr Gove effectively sacked the four independent directors of the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) just days after he was appointed to the role by David Cameron in the wake of the Conservatives' General Election victory.

The quartet included respected figures including Tim Breedon, the former chief executive of Legal & General (LSE: LGEN.L - news) and a current non-executive director of Barclays; and Dame Sue Street, a former Permanent Secretary at the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.

The MoJ is now seeking their replacements but Sky News can also reveal that it has already decided to appoint Sir Theodore Agnew as a director.

Sir Theodore, a businessman who founded Somerton Capital, a private equity firm, served on the board of the Department for Education (DfE) during Mr Gove’s tenure as Education Secretary.

He was knighted in the most recent New Year honours list for services to education, and filings show that he donated £134,000 to the Tories between 2007 and 2009.

Sir Theodore, who then went on to chair the DfE's academies board, was also at the centre of a row about whether Mr Gove would seek to install him as the chairman of Ofsted, the education watchdog.

He is also a trustee of Policy Exchange, the right-leaning think-tank.

The MoJ board changes - which were outlined in the department's annual accounts, published this week but were not the subject of a separate announcement - are likely to fuel a fresh row about ministers' efforts to politicise the supposedly impartial roles.

Any perception of political interference by independent directors may be particularly sensitive at a time when Whitehall is preparing for significant new spending cuts which are likely to include the redundancies of thousands of civil servants.

Dozens of figures from the worlds of business were recruited to Whitehall boards in 2010 as part of a project orchestrated by Francis Maude, the then Cabinet Office minister, to improve their governance and operational efficiency.

Lord Browne, the former boss of BP, was recruited as the Government's first lead non-executive director working across Whitehall.

He was recently replaced by Sir Ian Cheshire, the former boss of Kingfisher (LSE: KGF.L - news) , the DIY retailer which owns B&Q.

One source close to the MoJ said the four existing non-executives had been "asked to resign", and said that Mr Gove was treating the directorships "as if they were special adviser posts rather than independent roles".

Chuka Umunna, Labour's shadow business secretary, has previously questioned the impartiality of some of the Whitehall directors.

On Saturday he told Sky News: "We warned about the creeping politicisation of Whitehall before the Election, and there is now the distinct whiff of it afterwards.

"Non-political appointees should be as independent and objective as possible - it is, in part, why they are appointed."

The website of the Centre for Public Appointments, a unit of the Cabinet Office, displays an invitation to apply for the vacant MoJ directorships, saying that at least three are currently open and that they are not ministerial appointments.

Non-executives are expected to "advise on performance and transformation, operational issues and the effective management of the Department", the advertisement states.

The roles pay between £15,000 and £20,000 annually, with a time commitment of up to 30 days per year.

In a statement issued to Sky News, a spokeswoman for the MoJ confirmed the changes, saying: "Following the election, the non-executive board members at the MoJ have stood down.

"In line with Cabinet Office protocols, the Department has advertised for a new lead non-executive board member.

"Shortlisted candidates will be subject to a panel-based interview and the process is being overseen by the Government's lead non-executive, Sir Ian Cheshire."

The spokeswoman also confirmed Sir Theodore's appointment to the MoJ board, adding: "He brings with him five years' experience as a non-executive at the DfE, where he drove efficiencies and improved departmental performance."

Dame Sue Street said: "On the 1st of June, the Justice Secretary took the decision to replace all non-executive directors by the end of June.

"Immediately following the audit committee meeting, on the 8th of June, I tendered my resignation and expressed on the record my unhappiness and my concerns that it produces a discontinuity of external and audit committee levels, which is not in the spirit of good governance."