Starmer picks Blair aide Powell as security adviser

Sir Keir Starmer has appointed Tony Blair's former chief of staff as his national security adviser.

Veteran diplomat Jonathan Powell will begin the role next month, it is understood, taking over from Sir Tim Barrow, who has held the role since September 2022.

Mr Powell, who was No 10 chief of staff between 1997 to 2007, played a key role in brokering the 1998 Good Friday peace deal in Northern Ireland.

The appointment comes at a crucial time, given conflicts in the Middle East and Ukraine, and Donald Trump's return to the White House in January.

Sir Keir said Mr Powell's experience made him "uniquely qualified" to advise ministers on global security challenges.

Downing Street has also confirmed that another Blair aide, former No 10 deputy chief of staff Liz Lloyd, will be joining as Sir Keir's director of policy delivery and innovation.

In his new role, Mr Powell will give national security advice to the prime minister and other cabinet ministers.

The holder of the post is always appointed by the PM but is normally a civil servant. Mr Powell will be a special adviser - a political appointee whose wages are paid by taxpayers.

In April, previous prime minster Rishi Sunak announced that General Gwyn Jenkins, of the Royal Marines, would be replacing Sir Tim in the summer.

But Sir Keir cancelled the appointment on taking office and restarted the recruitment process, without offering an explanation.

Sir Keir brought Mr Powell in to lead negotiations over the recently-announced deal to cede sovereignty of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius, which has faced a backlash from several senior Conservative MPs.

The islands, known officially as the British Indian Ocean Territory, contain a UK-US military base on the island of Diego Garcia, over which the UK will retain jurisdiction for an "initial period" of 99 years.

A number of US Republicans have also attacked the deal, which has been backed by the outgoing Biden administration, warning that it could help boost China's influence in the region.

'Extremely concerning'

Mr Powell dismissed criticism of the accord after it was announced, arguing the Americans were “intimately involved” in the negotiations and it had been through “all of the agencies in Washington”.

Speaking on Times Radio, he said the UK should not be "too worried" about giving up the territory, adding it consisted of "very tiny islands in the middle of the Indian Ocean where no one actually goes".

“We're probably losing more to tidal erosion in the East Coast (of England) than that," he added.

A Conservative Party spokesperson said: “It is disappointing the government have appointed another Labour apparatchik to a senior role, sidelining an experienced general.

“Mr Powell’s previous comments about the unimportance of British overseas territories are extremely concerning and many will be worried that there is more to come.”

Mr Powell has dismissed Tory criticism of the agreement, insisting the UK's decision to start negotiations in 2022 came amid a "very weak" legal position following international legal rulings that had sided with Mauritius.

He told Sky News that former Tory leadership candidate James Cleverly, one of those criticising the deal, had "enthusiastically" participated in the process when he was foreign secretary under Rishi Sunak.

After leaving Tony Blair's Downing Street, Mr Powell led a UK-based charity working on international conflicts and was made UK envoy to Libya in 2014 under former Conservative prime minister David Cameron.