Sir Jonathan Van-Tam is leaving his post as one of the Government’s top scientific advisers, it was revealed today.
England’s deputy chief medical officer, who has become something of a household name, is set to exit his current role at the end of March.
He will then return to the University of Nottingham to focus on academic work.
Announcing his resignation, the 57-year-old said it had been the ‘greatest privilege of my professional career’ to serve the UK public during the pandemic.
He paid tribute to Professor Chris Whitty, England’s chief medical officer, and other scientists working behind the scenes to keep the virus at bay, but made no mention of ministers.
Hugely popular Sir Jonathan, considered to be one of Boris Johnson’s favourite advisers, shot to fame in the early stages of the pandemic for his use of metaphors to explain complex science.
