Supporting your organisation to understand government

Philip Rycroft was for 30 years a policy professional in government. He has deep expertise in the workings of government at all levels in the UK and in constitutional and devolution matters. He worked on the Scottish Referendum and the EU Referendum. He was at the centre of events in the UK Coalition Government from mid-2012 to May 2015. He led on preparations for Brexit. He has huge experience across a wide range of policy areas. He has worked in business and understands the relationship between business and government.

Philip has unrivaled expertise in UK governance. From 2012 to 2019 he was the lead civil servant in the Cabinet Office advising UK Government Ministers on all constitutional and devolution issues. From 2017 to 2019 he was Permanent Secretary in the Department for Exiting the European Union, covering all aspects of the UK’s preparations for exit and for the negotiations on the future relationship. From 2012 to 2015 he worked for the Deputy Prime Minister, Nick Clegg, leading the civil service team in his office.

He has held senior positions in the civil service working for both the UK Government and the Scottish Government. He has worked closely with Cabinet-level ministers of four political parties, giving him a unique insight into the functioning of government and the political process.

Through his career, he has had direct experience of a wide range of policy areas, including better regulation, enterprise, innovation, higher and further education, skills and school education, environment and agriculture and fisheries.

He spent two years in the Cabinet of Sir Leon Brittan in the European Commission, working on trade issues. He has also worked in the private sector with Scottish & Newcastle plc and Hutchsion Whampoa (Europe) Ltd.

The offer

Know how government works

Whatever your requirements…

We live in perplexing times. Old certainties are washed away. Politics is febrile and unpredictable. Working out how the actions of government or developments in politics will impact your organisation has never been more complex. With his extensive experience of government, Philip can help you to understand how your organisation is positioned in this new world and to focus your planning on the most likely scenarios.

Since leaving the civil service in March 2019, Philip has advised businesses and other organisations on a range of current issues.

Commentary

Philip has given a number of public talks on the state of British politics and has commented extensively on TV and radio.

Here are links to some of his output:

Lectures

Place policy after Brexit. A lecture delivered for the Centre for Science and Policy at the Royal Society on 26 June 2019

Brexit and the Union: what next for Scotland in the UK? A lecture delivered for the David Hume Institute, Edinburgh, on 9 September 2019

Brexit and the UK in the world: what lies ahead? A lecture delivered for Policy Scotland, Glasgow University, on 18 September 2019

Brexit and the road ahead. A lecture delivered for the Bennett Institute at Cambridge University on 3 October 2019

Brexit and the Union of the United Kingdom. A lecture delivered for the University of Aix-Marseilles on 8 November 2019

Brexit, devolution and the general election. The Annual Lecture of the Wales Governance Centre delivered in Cardiff on 9 December 2019

Brexit and the future governance of the UK.  | Video | Audio  A lecture delivered for the University of Bath on 21 January 2020

Brexit: what does it mean for British democracy? A lecture delivered for the Constitution Unit, UCL, on 5 March 2020

Where are we at? The EU-UK negotiations so far and future challenges. A keynote speech delivered at NEXTEUK Conference on 10 September 2020

After Brexit: where next for the United Kingdom? A lecture delivered to the German Association of British Studies, 29 October 2020.

Where next for Global Britain: The UK and the world post-brexit. A lecture delivered to the University of Edinburgh Business School, 10 October 2022

Articles

Never mind getting Brexit 'done'. For civil servants, the work is about to begin. Article for the Guardian, 21 January 2020

The December 2019 UK general election: reflections. Article for Revue Française de civilisation Britannique, XXV-3 2020

The shape of Brexit is now clear, but not the outcome. Article for the New European, 25 September 2020

Scotland is almost lost. An article published in Prospect magazine, December 2020

How devolution will decide Britain's future. An article for the Yorkshire Post, 23 January 2021

Union at the Crossroads: can the British state handle the challenges of devolution? An article written with Mike Kenny and Jack Sheldon for the Constitution Society, 11 April 2021

A date with history: Britain votes to leave the EU. An article for The World Today, Chatham House, 4 June 2021

Scotland and Brexit: where next? An article for Encompass, 2 July 2021

The Northern Ireland Protocol: is there another way? An article for Encompass, 11 November 2021

After Brexit: The State of the Uk Union An article for the Revue Française de Civilisation Britannique, 27 February 2022

Not by design: the erratic evolution of the British constitution since 1997. A paper for the Bennett Institute and Institute for Government, 16 November 2022

Blog Posts

Brexit and the Union: what next for the UK? Blog for the Centre on Constitutional Change, 10 September 2019

Civil service relocation plans are encouraging - do they go far enough? A blog for Prospect, 20 March 2020

Changing of the guard: what the next Cabinet Secretary needs to know. A blog for Prospect, 2 May 2020

Coronavirus, the British State and Brexit A blog for CSaP, 19 June 2020

Scottish independence: what would it mean for the rest of the UK? A blog for Prospect, 18 August 2020

The civil service survived Cummings; now comes the hard bit. A blog for Prospect, 18 November 2020

A deal is within reach. Crashing out would be an overwhelming failure of statecraft. A blog for Prospect, 11 December 2020

Why the vaccine row is a straw in the Brexit wind. A blog for Prospect, 20 January 2021

The Dunlop Review: implications for the Union? A blog for the Bennett Institute for Public Policy, 26 March 2021

Union at the Crossroads: can the British state handle the challenges of devolution? A blog for the Centre on Constitutional Change, 12 April 2021

The Northern Ireland Protocol: make up or break down? A blog for the Centre on Constitutional Change, 19 October 2021

Unionists must rethink if they want to break the Scottish independence stalemate. A blog for Prospect, 14 January 2022

Politicians must recognise their duty to protect the UK constitution.  A blog for Bennett Institute for Public Policy, 16 November 2022

Undoing the Scottish Gender Recognition Reform Bill A blog for UK in a Changing Europe 25 January 2023

Interviews

The United Kingdom's future is now in doubt, says former Brexit chief Philip Rycroft Interview for the Cambridge Independent, 30 September 2019

Former Brexit Department Chief: 'the chances of a second Scottish independence referendum have certainly gone up' An interview for Prospect, 13 November 2019

'An iconoclastic government': former DEXEU chief Philip Rycroft on threats to the UK and its democracy Interview for Global Government Forum, 16 October 2020

Former top mandarin Philip Rycroft says levelling up must be accompanied by massive devolution to the regions Interview for the Yorkshire Post, 23 January 2021

What impact would Scottish independence have on UK soft power? An interview for Chatham House, 11 May 2021

Podcasts

UK in a Changing Europe podcast: Brexit Breakdown, on 29 May 2020

Brexit and devolution. Podcast with Nicola McEwan for Constitutionally Sound, Centre on Constitutional Change, 19 November 2020

Union at the Crossroads. Podcast with Mike Kenny for the Bennett Institute for Public Policy, 12 April 2021

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