Starmer bolsters business team with hiring of Evercore banker

A senior City banker is joining Sir Keir Starmer’s business liaison team as Downing Street grapples with a string of industrial challenges, including the fate of Britain’s biggest water company and its second-biggest steelmaker.

Sky News has learnt that Victoria Buhler, who works for the merger advisory firm Robey Warshaw, now part of Evercore, has accepted a role at 10 Downing Street.

Sources said she would work closely with Varun Chandra, the prime minister's chief adviser on business, investment and trade.

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Mr Chandra was recently appointed to an additional role as Sir Keir's special envoy to the US on trade and investment.

Ms Buhler has worked at Robey Warshaw, one of the City's most successful advisers on major takeovers, for more than a decade.

Robey Warshaw, where the former chancellor George Osborne was also a partner until recently, was itself sold last year to the US investment bank Evercore.

Ms Buhler's arrival will come at a time when the government is urgently seeking ways to boost economic growth, even as the chancellor, Rachel Reeves, faces ongoing criticism of the tax-raising measures included in November's Budget.

The new member of Mr Chandra's team is expected to bring her corporate finance expertise to bear on situations including the future of Thames Water and British Steel, both of which are uncertain.

A Downing Street spokesperson said the government did not comment on staffing matters.

Ms Buhler could not be reached for comment.

(c) Sky News 2026: Starmer bolsters business team with hiring of Evercore banker