The resignation of Sir Ivan Rogers leaves the UK dangerously short of experts

Sir Ivan was one of the few people who understood the workings of the EU. Theresa May could come to regret his departure

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Sir Ivan Rogers resigns as the ambassador to the EU

The resignation of a British ambassador rarely makes headlines news.
Few people will have heard of Sir Ivan Rogers, a respected if reticent civil servant who like most of his breed prefers the shadows to the sunlight.
But Sir Ivan is no ordinary diplomat and his departure is no ordinary event.
For the last three years he has been Britain’s ambassador to the EU and, as such, is the country’s pre-eminent contact with the presidents, officials, politicians and envoys which make up the Brussels establishment.
The suggestion is Sir Ivan has been bundled out prematurely by a frustrated Downing Street.

Theresa May is left without a trusted voice in Brussels (Photo: Adam Gerrard/Daily Mirror)

Just before Christmas it emerged that he had warned it could take at least 10 years for the UK to extricate itself fully from the EU.
This appears to have been a message the Brexiteers did not want to hear.
Having being given a realistic diagnosis of their condition they wanted a second opinion which was less pessimistic.
Ministers of all parties will tell of their frustration with civil servants.
They will complain how policies are thwarted, of the interminable bureaucracy and the wearisome internal battles to get a simple measure signed off.
Perhaps Sir Ivan was at times guilty of some of these sins.
To the Leavers he carried the additional stigma of not just being a bureaucrat but also a eurocrat - those anonymous, well-rewarded denizens of Brussels who are accused, often without evidence, of imposing unnecessary rules and red tape on innocent Britons.
Anyone who spends more than a couple of nights in the Belgian capital is instantly accused of going native.
Yet good ministers come to appreciate that the civil service at its best is populated by people of exceptional intelligence and expertise.

Michael Gove has had enough of experts (Photo: Getty Images)

Michael Gove infamously said during the EU referendum campaign we have had enough of experts.
Now we have lost another. One of the few people who understood the mechanisms and mindsets of the European Union has left just as we are about to begin the most complicated set of international negotiations since the Treaty of Versailles.
Theresa May will find another ambassador.
Perhaps she will appoint someone who is more compliant with a Pollyanna grin and perfectly formed forelock upon which to tug.
Whether she is able to find someone who is an experienced EU negotiator, steeped in the ways of Brussels, trusted by counterparts and able to cut through the thickets of treaties, compacts and directives is another matter.

Culled from Mirror

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