Sir Simon Gass GCMG CVO is a Senior Adviser at SC Strategy. He is also Visiting Professor at King’s College London and Non-Executive Chair of the UK Foreign Office’s £260m turnover commercial arm.

From 2019 to 2023 Simon was appointed Chair of the Joint Intelligence Committee (JIC), the UK’s interagency body responsible for intelligence assessment, coordination and oversight of the UK’s intelligence services. In that role, Simon was responsible for providing the Prime Minister and National Security Council with strategic assessments on the full range of national security issues.

This followed a long career as a British diplomat and national security expert. While in the Foreign Office, his appointments included Ambassador to Greece (2004-2009), Ambassador to Iran (2009-2011) and NATO’s Senior Civilian Representative to Afghanistan (2011-12).

As the Foreign Office’s Political Director (2013-2016) Simon led policy on the Middle East, Russia, Africa, South and Central Asia, the United Nations and other international institutions. During this period, he led the UK team at the prolonged E3+3 negotiations which resulted in the Iran Nuclear Agreement – the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action - in July 2016.

After leaving the Foreign Office, Simon became Commandant of the Royal College of Defence Studies in 2018, before moving to the JIC in 2019.