Sir Ivan Rogers, a former British civil servant, was notably also the former diplomatic representative to the European Union on behalf of the United Kingdom from 2013-2017. As the Permanent Representative of the United Kingdom to the European Union over the course of these years, Rogers advised that the United Kingdom remain with European Union. However, conflicts with the late Prime Minister Theresa May, led him to stepping down from this position because of the irreparable damage he believed this course of action would take.
Sir Rogers grew up in Bournemouth, England, and went to Balliol College, a constituent of the renowned Oxford College, studying three years of history. After Balliol, Rogers went to Paris to study at École Normale Supérieure in Paris, France. Rogers began his career as a British civil servant in the Department of Health and Social Security. In 1992, he worked for Her Majesty’s Treasury, along with receiving some special work to assist Chief of Staff, Sir Leon Brittan, to the European Commission. In 2003, he was lined up to be Prime Minister Tony Blair’s principal private secretary for three years until 2006. Rogers decided to switch career paths as a civil servant and entered the banking industry with Citi Group as the head of their UK Public Sector Group. He held this role for several years, then eventually transitioned into a representative role for the UK at the European Union headquarters in Belgium.
During his time as a representative, Rogers was notably against the notion for the UK to leave the European Union in the “Brexit” referendum. His views of how the UK ultimately differed with the strategy of other British leaders, which caused him to be one of the first civil servants to step down from this role.