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Downing Street advertises for £135k data science 'skunkworks' chief in latest Cummings shake-up

Mr Cummings, the Prime Minister’s chief aide, is known for his disdain for traditional civil servants  - Reuters
Mr Cummings, the Prime Minister’s chief aide, is known for his disdain for traditional civil servants - Reuters

Downing Street has placed an advert for £135,000 job to head up "skunkworks" in Number 10, in what appears the latest in Dominic Cummings' shake-up of Whitehall.

The new job will be responsible for a new data science unit in Number 10, aimed to “transform” decision-making in government.

A skunkworks is a term originating in America during WWII for a project developed by a small and loosely structured group focusing on radical innovation.

The civil service advert says the role will involve leading a new "analytical unit known as ‘10ds" - which stands for "10 Data Science".

It says: "The vision of 10ds is a skunkworks type organisation that builds innovative software to allow the PM to make data driven decisions and thereby transform government".

Mr Cummings, the Prime Minister’s chief aide, is known for his disdain for traditional civil servants.

He has said his focus after Brexit will be the establishment of a British version of the US’s Advanced Projects Research Agency (Arpa).

He recently instructed government advisers to read a book on Superforecasting by Philip Tetlock, as well as High Output Management by Andrew Grove.

While the salary for the new role is advertised as up to £135,000, "outstanding" candidates could get more.

The advert says the “newly created role will be responsible for establishing No10's quantitative ability” as well as advising the Prime Minister. It says the job presents an opportunity to work "at the heart' of government. Applications close on July 27.

Earlier this year Mr Cummings placed an advert for “data scientists, project managers, policy experts and assorted weirdos” to apply for Downing Street jobs.

Mr Cummings used his personal blog to invite applications from “true wild cards, artists, people who never went to university and fought their way out of an appalling hell hole”.

In a much-publicised post, he said: “If you want to figure out what characters around Putin might do, or how international criminal gangs might exploit holes in our border security, you don’t want more Oxbridge English graduates who chat about Lacan at dinner parties with TV producers and spread fake news about fake news.”

Shortly after the blog advert was posted, a new Downing Street adviser Andrew Sabisky quit following reports of his controversial comments on pregnancies, eugenics and race.