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The top official at the Department for Exiting the European Union is stepping down after just over a year in the job, the Evening Standard has learned.

The decision of Oliver Robbins to move from Permanent Secretary at DExEU to a co-ordinating role at Downing Street in the middle of Brexit negotiations plunges Theresa May’s Brexit plans into further disarray.

It comes as two allies of Boris Johnson said the Foreign Secretary is prepared to walk out of the Cabinet if Mrs May bows to pressure for a “soft” Brexit.

One said: “Brexit is his baby. He thinks to himself, ‘what’s the point if Brexit goes south? I think he feels he is in Government to get Brexit right.”

The implied threat from the Johnson camp follows a hostile reaction from Cabinet rivals to his 4,000-word article setting down his personal demands for a hard Brexit, which most MPs saw as an attempt to box in Mrs May ahead of her planned speech in Florence on Friday. Home Secretary Amber Rudd accused Mr Johnson of trying to be a “back-seat driver”.

Environment Secretary Michael Gove backed Mr Johnson this morning by tweeting that Mr Johnson had been right to claim Britain could gain control over £350 million a week gross contributions to Brussels.

Mr Gove tweeted: “Debate should be forward looking on how to make most of life outside EU - not refighting referendum.”

The move of career civil servant Mr Robbins follows reports in the summer of a “schism” between him and David Davis, the Brexit Secretary who is the Cabinet minister in charge of DExEU.

Sir Keir Starmer, Labour’s shadow Brexit secretary, said it smacked of “chaos”.

He said: “Moving key individuals at this critical time adds a whole new dimension to the government’s chaotic approach to Brexit. Deep divisions in the Cabinet and a complete lack of leadership are putting the national interest at risk.”

Government officials said Mr Robbins will still take part in next week’s fourth round of Brexit talks alongside Mr Davis, but working for the Prime Minister.

A Whitehall official told the Standard: “Olly has always worried the Brexiteers as to where he is. There were comments going around that he was trying to slow things down. I’ve heard it said that Olly Robbins is the man on top of all the detail, while DD does the showmanship.”

Another source claimed that Mr Davis’s officials do not believe it possible to deliver the sort of Brexit that he has pushed for, causing tensions.

It was reported in July that the civil servant, who is on close terms with Mrs May from when they were both at the Home Office, had annoyed Mr Davis by making decisions without him.

In Brussels, Mr Robbins is seen in Brussels as a good match for deputy chief Brexit negotiator Sabine Weyand, the sharp-witted German Commission official.

He has the respect of EU negotiators, who feel he has been “doing his best”, despite the political machinations in London, said one official close to the Brexit talks.

He is known among his counterparts in Europe for his depth of knowledge and good humour - though his casual attire prompted a rebuke from one UK official ahead of the August negotiating round, after he attempted to attend a meeting in shorts on a hot Brussels summer day.

A Government spokesman told the Standard: “In order to strengthen cross Government co-ordination of the next phase of negotiations with the European Union, the Prime Minister has appointed Oliver Robbins as her EU Adviser in the Cabinet Office, in addition to his role as EU Sherpa.

“He will continue to lead the official-side UK team in the negotiations, working closely with the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union [Mr Davis], and coordinate relations with the Commission and member states.”

Philip Rycroft, currently Mr Robbins’s deputy at DExEU will take over as Permanent Secretary.

The spokesman said Mr Davis remained “principal of the negotiations, leading on exit-related legislation, domestic preparedness for exit and engagement with stakeholders in the UK, including the devolved administrations, and in the EU27 and beyond”.