John-Paul Marks

John-Paul ('JP') Marks (born 1979–1980) is a senior civil servant who currently serves as the Permanent Secretary to the Scottish Government, a position he has held since 2022 following the departure of previous office holder, Leslie Evans.

Prior to becoming Permanent Secretary to the Scottish Government, he previously worked in the UK Government's Department for Work and Pensions, serving as the Director General for Work and Health Services from 2019 to 2022 and Director General for Universal Credit Operations from 2018 to 2019.

Early life
John-Paul Marks was born in Jersey in the Channel Islands. The son of Susan Marks and Dr Michael Marks, he attended the Victoria College. He studied at Cambridge University from 1999 to 2002 and earned a MA in social and political science. He attended Boston University, graduating in 2003 with an MA in international relations.

Civil service
Marks joined the UK civil service in 2004. In HM Treasury, he served as the Speechwriter to the Chief Secretary to the Treasury. Marks spent much of his career before the Scottish Government at the Department for Work and Pensions, latterly as Director General. He served as Principal Private Secretary to Yvette Cooper and Iain Duncan Smith, and was Private Secretary to Mike O'Brien among other roles.

Permanent Secretary; 2022–
Marks was appointed as the Permanent Secretary to the Scottish Government on 1 January 2022. At the time of his appointment, Marks was said to be "committed to building a world-class, values-led civil service which excels in serving the public". Upon commencement as Permanent Secretary to the Scottish Government, he assumed the role of leading the Scottish Government civil service, ensuring it delivers the "full range of devolved powers and duties set out in the Scotland Acts". As the principal accountable officer for the Scottish Government, he is primarily responsible and accountable to the Scottish Parliament for the exercise of his responsibilities as Permanent Secretary.

As Permanent Secretary to the Scottish Government, he is responsible for more than 7,000 civil servants working for the Scottish Government in Scotland, as well as other locations including Europe, North America and Asia. As Permanent Secretary, Marks is responsible for the development, implementation and communication of government policies.

Personal life
Marks is married with two children. He currently resides in Scotland.