25 Facts About Mark Sedwill

Mark Sedwill served as the United Kingdom National Security Adviser from 2017 to 2020.

Mark Sedwill was previously the United Kingdom's Ambassador to Afghanistan from 2009 to 2010 and the NATO Senior Civilian Representative in Afghanistan in 2010.

Mark Sedwill was the Permanent Under-Secretary of State at the Home Office from February 2013 to April 2017.

Mark Sedwill went to the University of St Andrews, where he took a Bachelor of Science in economics; later, he gained a Master of Philosophy in economics from St Edmund Hall, Oxford.

Mark Sedwill joined the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in 1989 and he served in the Security Coordination Department and the Gulf War Emergency Unit until 1991.

Mark Sedwill was then posted in Cairo, Egypt, from 1991 to 1994 as a Second Secretary, then First Secretary in Iraq from 1996 to 1997 whilst serving as a United Nations weapons inspector, then in Nicosia, Cyprus, as First Secretary for Political-Military Affairs and Counterterrorism from 1997 to 1999.

Mark Sedwill was the Private Secretary to the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs from 2000 to 2002 in the run-up to and preparations for the 2003 Iraq invasion.

Mark Sedwill then served as the Deputy High Commissioner to Pakistan, based in Islamabad from 2003 to 2005, then the Deputy Director for the Middle East and North Africa Department of the Foreign Office.

Mark Sedwill was succeeded as ambassador temporarily by his predecessor, Cowper-Coles, and then by William Patey, formerly British Ambassador to Saudi Arabia.

In May 2011, Mark Sedwill took over as the FCO's Director-General for Afghanistan and Pakistan from Karen Pierce.

Mark Sedwill additionally became the FCO's Director-General, Political, in autumn 2012, replacing Geoffrey Adams.

In February 2013, Mark Sedwill became the Permanent Secretary at the Home Office, filling the vacancy left by Helen Ghosh.

Mark Sedwill became acting Cabinet Secretary in June 2018, while Jeremy Heywood took a leave of absence on medical grounds, and was appointed to replace Heywood on his retirement on 24 October 2018.

Mark Sedwill is the second Cabinet Secretary never to have worked at HM Treasury, and the first whose career has been dominated by diplomatic and security work.

Mark Sedwill was described as the Prime Minister's "first and only choice" to replace Heywood, with no recruitment process taking place and some suggesting the urgency of arrangements for the UK's departure from the European Union as a reason for the quick appointment.

In November 2019, Mark Sedwill blocked the publication of a document written by civil servants to cost the Labour Party's fiscal plans before a general election.

In June 2020, it was announced that Mark Sedwill would be stepping down from his civil service appointments in September 2020.

Mark Sedwill stepped down as national security adviser in September 2020.

Mark Sedwill was to be replaced by David Frost, who was Johnson's special adviser and chief negotiator in talks on the post-Brexit trade and security relationship with the EU.

Mark Sedwill was replaced as Cabinet Secretary and Head of the Home Civil Service by Simon Case on 9 September 2020.

Mark Sedwill was appointed a non-executive director of BAE Systems plc on 1 November 2022.

Mark Sedwill is a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society, Fellow of the Institute of Directors and President of the Special Forces Club.

Mark Sedwill is a trustee and Council member of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution.

Mark Sedwill was appointed Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George in 2008 Birthday Honours, promoted in the same Order to Knight Commander in the 2018 New Year Honours and then to Knight Grand Cross in the 2023 New Year Honours, all for services to British foreign policy, national security and HM Government.

Mark Sedwill made his maiden speech during a debate in the House of Lords about the Russian invasion of Ukraine on 25 February 2022.