Sir Jonathan Andrew de Sievrac Stephens, KCB (born 8 February 1960) is a retired British civil servant who was Permanent Secretary at the

Northern Ireland Office The Northern Ireland Office (NIO; ga, Oifig Thuaisceart Éireann, Ulster-Scots: ''Norlin Airlann Oaffis'') is a department of His Majesty's Government responsible for Northern Ireland affairs. The NIO is led by the Secretary of State for N ...

between 2014 and 2020, and the Permanent Secretary of the

Department for Culture, Media and Sport , type = Department , logo = Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport logo.svg , logo_width = , logo_caption = , seal = , seal_width = , seal_caption = , picture = Gove ...

between 2006 and 2013. On his retirement, he was replaced as Permanent Secretary of the Northern Ireland Office by

Madeleine Alessandri Madeleine Kay Alessandri (born 1965) is a British civil servant who has had a career in the security and diplomatic services. , she is the Permanent Secretary for the Northern Ireland Office, replacing Sir Jonathan Stephens following his retir ...

Personal life

Stephens was born in 1960 in

Bromley Bromley is a large town in Greater London, England, within the London Borough of Bromley. It is south-east of Charing Cross, and had an estimated population of 87,889 as of 2011. Originally part of Kent, Bromley became a market town, c ...

, Kent, the son of Prescot and Peggy (née Pike) Stephens. He was educated at

Sevenoaks School Sevenoaks School is a highly selective coeducational independent school in Sevenoaks, Kent, England. It is the second oldest non-denominational school in the United Kingdom, dating back to 1432, only behind Oswestry (1407). Over 1,000 day pupils ...

, and Christ Church, Oxford, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Philosophy, Politics and Economics. He and his wife, Rev Penny Stephens, whom he married in 1983, have two children, Benjamin and Eleanor.

Career

Stephens joined the Civil Service in the

in 1983, being promoted through various grades before transferring to the Cabinet Office as Director of Modernising Public Service in 2000. In 2001, he was seconded to

HM Treasury His Majesty's Treasury (HM Treasury), occasionally referred to as the Exchequer, or more informally the Treasury, is a department of His Majesty's Government responsible for developing and executing the government's public finance policy and ...

where he rose to be managing director of Public Services 2004–06, replacing Sir Nicholas Macpherson. In 2006, Stephens was appointed Permanent Secretary of DCMS to replace Dame Sue Street on her retirement. During his time at the DCMS, he oversaw the organisation of major events, including 2012 Olympic Games and 2012 Paralympic Games in London, and the Diamond Jubilee of Elizabeth II. From September 2013 to May 2014, Stephens worked as a reviewer at HM Treasury, and joined the

as Permanent Secretary in June 2014. As of 2015, Stephens was paid a salary of between £155,000 and £159,999 by DCLG, making him one of the 328 most highly paid people in the British public sector at that time.

Public Accounts Committee

On 26 April 2012, Stephens appeared before the Public Accounts Committee at the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. T ...

, where he was asked 10 times by

Margaret Hodge Dame Margaret Eve Hodge, Lady Hodge, (née Oppenheimer, formerly Watson; born 8 September 1944) is a British politician serving as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Barking since 1994. A member of the Labour Party, she previously served as ...

MP about whether he knew that Adam Smith, a special adviser to Culture Secretary

Jeremy Hunt Jeremy Richard Streynsham Hunt (born 1 November 1966) is a British politician who has served as Chancellor of the Exchequer since 14 October 2022. He previously served in the Cabinet as Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport ...

, was acting as a liaison between his department and media owner

Rupert Murdoch Keith Rupert Murdoch ( ; born 11 March 1931) is an Australian-born American business magnate. Through his company News Corp, he is the owner of hundreds of local, national, and international publishing outlets around the world, including ...

. Stephens refused to disclose any information about his knowledge or authorisation of the role.

Honours

Stephens was appointed

Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate medieval ceremony for appointing a knight, which involved bathing (as a symbol of purification) as o ...

in the

2013 Birthday Honours The 2013 Birthday Honours were appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. The Birthday Honours are awarded as part of ...

for public service, especially to the Olympic Games in London.

Offices held

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stephens, Jonathan 1960 births Living people People from Bromley People educated at Sevenoaks School Alumni of Christ Church, Oxford British civil servants Civil servants in HM Treasury Civil servants in the Northern Ireland Office Civil servants in the Cabinet Office Knights Commander of the Order of the Bath Permanent Under-Secretaries of State for Culture, Media and Sport Permanent Under-Secretaries of State for Northern Ireland