Catherine Webb, a senior Treasury official during a turbulent period in British politics, has died at the age of 47 from metastatic ovarian cancer. Ms Webb also served as bursar of Emmanuel College, Cambridge.
Beginning her career at the Treasury in 2000, Ms Webb played a significant role in assisting ministers during the 2008 financial crisis and Brexit. She later became the Treasury’s director of operations, managing non-policy aspects of the department.
Ms Webb was promoted to director level in 2015 and held various roles concerning the UK's relationship with the EU, leading teams at the Department for Exiting the European Union and the Cabinet Office's Europe Unit. In 2020, she was made a Companion of the Order of the Bath. She left the civil service in 2023 to become bursar at Emmanuel College.