Sir Simon James Fraser (born 3 June 1958) is a British former diplomat who served as the

Permanent Under-Secretary A permanent under-secretary of state, known informally as a permanent secretary, is the most senior civil servant of a ministry in the United Kingdom, charged with running the department on a day-to-day basis. Permanent secretaries are appointe ...

of the

Foreign and Commonwealth Office The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) is the ministry of foreign affairs and a Departments of the Government of the United Kingdom, ministerial department of the government of the United Kingdom. The office was created on 2 ...

from August 2010 to July 2015, having served as Permanent Secretary of the

Department for Business, Innovation and Skills The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) was a ministerial department of the Government of the United Kingdom. It was created by the Gordon Brown premiership on 5 June 2009 by the merger of the Department for Innovation, Uni ...

from May 2009 to August 2010. Sir Simon is a Trustee of the Patchwork Foundation, founded by Harris Bokhari. Sir Simon is currently Chair of

Chatham House The Royal Institute of International Affairs, also known as Chatham House, is a British think tank based in London, England. Its stated mission is "to help governments and societies build a sustainably secure, prosperous, and just world". It ...

, having previously served as Deputy Chair from 2016 to 2022. He is also a Founding Partner of Flint Global.

Early life

Fraser was educated at

St Paul's School, London St Paul's School is a Selective school, selective Private schools in the United Kingdom, independent day school (with limited boarding school, boarding) for boys aged 13–18, founded in 1509 by John Colet and located on a 43-acre site by Rive ...

, and

Corpus Christi College, Cambridge Corpus Christi College (full name: "The College of Corpus Christi and the Blessed Virgin Mary", often shortened to "Corpus") is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. From the late 14th c ...

, where he gained an MA in Classics.

Diplomatic career

Before going to the Business Department, Fraser's career had centred on the

. He joined the Office in 1979, from where he was sent to the United Nations to help the lead UK delegation to the 5th Committee of the General Assembly. Following this, he served in Iraq, Syria, Paris and Brussels. Having been seconded to the European Commission he worked as ''Chef du Cabinet'' for Trade Commissioner

Peter Mandelson Peter Benjamin Mandelson, Baron Mandelson, (born 21 October 1953) is a British politician, lobbyist and diplomat who has served as British Ambassador to the United States since February 2025. A member of the Labour Party, Mandelson serve ...

in September 2004; he returned to the FCO in February 2008, where he took up the role of Director-General, Europe and Globalisation. In July 2010, the Prime Minister announced that Fraser would become Permanent Under Secretary at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, to replace Sir

Peter Ricketts Peter Forbes Ricketts, Baron Ricketts, (born 30 September 1952) is a retired British senior diplomat and a life peer. He has sat as a crossbencher in the House of Lords since 2016. Ricketts served as chair of the Joint Intelligence Committe ...

. In July 2015 it was announced Sir Simon was leaving the public sector, to be replaced as Permanent Secretary by Sir Simon McDonald, previously serving as British ambassador to Berlin. The annual remuneration for his role at the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills was between £160,000 and £165,000 in June 2010. In March 2013 his annual salary at the Foreign Office was between £180,000 and £185,000. He is a member of the

Apprenticeship Ambassadors Network The Apprenticeship Ambassadors Network is an employer-led body sponsored by the Skills Funding Agency in England. Its remit is to encourage more employers to become involved in apprenticeships in England. The Network is the successor body to the ...

Honours

Fraser was appointed

Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince of Wales (the future King George IV), while he was acting as prince regent for his father, King George I ...

(CMG) in the 2009 Birthday Honours,

Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince of Wales (the future King George IV), while he was acting as prince regent for his father, King George III ...

(KCMG) in the 2013 Birthday Honours, and

Knight Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince of Wales (the future King George IV), while he was acting as prince regent for his father, King George III ...

(GCMG) in the

2016 New Year Honours The New Year Honours 2016 were appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms to various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by citizens of those countries. The New Year Honours are awarded as part of the New Year celebrati ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fraser, Simon 1958 births Living people People educated at St Paul's School, London Alumni of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge Members of HM Diplomatic Service Permanent Under-Secretaries of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Permanent Under-Secretaries of State for Business, Innovation and Skills Permanent Under-Secretaries of State for Foreign Affairs Knights Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George 20th-century British diplomats