Former Brown adviser to lead UK's 'reset' talks with EU

Contributing sentiments towards policy:

56% : The EU team, which was transferred from the Foreign Office, will sit at the heart of government, in a sign of the importance attached by Starmer to the EU talks.
55% : Ellam will act as Starmer's "sherpa" in the talks, in a role which the official job advert admitted would "receive significant public scrutiny and public attention".
55% : Starmer wants to reduce post-Brexit trade barriers to boost growth, including striking a veterinary deal to smooth the flow of agricultural products, and develop security ties with the EU.
51% : Ellam, who will earn between £153,000 and £200,000 a year as "second permanent secretary, European Union and International Economic Affairs", is viewed in Whitehall as a skilled technocrat who will not seek the limelight in his new role.
48% : Michael Ellam, Gordon Brown's former media chief, will on Monday be named by Sir Keir Starmer to lead the UK's highly sensitive "reset" talks with the EU, putting him in one of the most exposed positions in Whitehall.Ellam, a former Treasury official and currently a senior HSBC executive, will join a team of about 50 civil servants in the Cabinet Office charged with getting a better post-Brexit deal from Brussels.
37% : The position was previously held by Sir Olly Robbins, who was subject to heavy media and political criticism over his efforts to negotiate a softer form of Brexit on behalf of ex-Tory premier Theresa May.

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