The Cabinet Secretary, with the approval of the Prime Minister, has appointed Darren Tierney as the new Permanent Secretary of the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
Darren, who is currently the Director General Propriety and Constitution Group in the Cabinet Office, will start the role next week.
He will lead the ONS at a critical time as it undergoes significant reforms to its organisational culture and management and as it improves the accuracy of key statistics under its Plan for ONS Economic Statistics.
The government recently announced the separation of the role of National Statistician from the Permanent Secretary of the ONS, as recommended by the recent review by Sir Robert Devereux. This is a two year fixed term appointment.
Civil Service Chief Operating Officer and Cabinet Office Permanent Secretary, Cat Little said
I congratulate Darren on his appointment as Permanent Secretary of the Office for National Statistics. I know that Darren will bring his inspiring leadership, experience and professionalism to the role at this important moment for the organisation as it takes forward reforms and continues to improve its provision of top-quality statistics and build a strong organisational culture.
I want to thank Emma Rourke for covering the combined Permanent Secretary role since 9 May 2025, and for the progress her and her team have made in the initial response to the Devereux report. Emma will continue to be Acting National Statistician while a full external recruitment campaign is conducted.
Incoming Permanent Secretary, Darren Tierney said
I am delighted to be appointed to the Permanent Secretary role leading the Office for National Statistics. It’s an incredibly important time for the Department and I’m looking forward to working with colleagues in the ONS and its many critical partners.
Chair of the UK Statistics Authority Board, Robert Chote said
I am very pleased that Darren Tierney will be joining the Office for National Statistics as its new Permanent Secretary. Darren is a person of integrity and strong values with over 20 years of policy, strategic and corporate experience across the civil service, including the management of transformation programmes. Working with Emma Rourke, Acting National Statistician, and our wonderful colleagues at the ONS, I am confident that he will foster a healthy positive culture in the organisation and ensure that it is led and managed in a way that allows it to deliver to its full potential.
The appointment follows an internal recruitment exercise. An external competition will be launched shortly to appoint a new National Statistician.
ENDS
