Senior Assistant Economist International Aviation Decarbonisation

Job summary

Can you produce and communicate high quality analysis to inform and support positions on complex public policy areas?

Do you have a track record of delivering such analysis with purpose and to tight deadlines?

Have you a deep interest in applying your economics and analytical skills to shape the future of aviation environmental policy?

If so, we’d love to hear from you!

Aviation, Maritime and Borders Analysis Division is a multi-profession analytical hub providing a full suite of analysis services to Aviation and Maritime policy Directorates. It is a cohesive team with a strong ethos of multi-profession analysis and close joint working with policy professionals to deliver evidence-based robust policy outcomes. AMBA is led by a leadership team of two Deputy Directors and six Grade 6 team leaders.

Joining our department comes with many benefits, including:

• Employer pension contribution of 28.97% of your salary. Read more about Civil Service Pensions here
• 25 days annual leave, increasing by 1 day each year of service (up to a maximum of 30 days annual leave), plus 8 bank holidays a privilege day for the King’s birthday
• Flexible working options where we encourage a great work-life balance.

Read more in the Benefits section below!

Find out more about what it's like working at the UK Department for Transport: Department for Transport Central - Department for Transport Careers

Job description

You will play an essential role supporting the Economic Advisor: International Decarbonisation in providing robust and authoritative analysis to shape policy to accelerate decarbonisation of the aviation sector through negotiation of international agreements and development of market-based measures. You will become an integral part of the DfT’s aviation decarbonisation team alongside your policy colleagues.

Your responsibilities will include, but aren’t limited to:

1. Contributing to the delivery and further development of the Government’s Aviation Decarbonisation Strategy, including supporting analytical input to policy relating to Carbon Markets and Removals
2. Working closely with DESNZ analysts to support analysis of the treatment of aviation emissions in the Emission Trading Schemes (ETSs) including developing the scheme’s approach to Sustainable Aviation Fuels (SAF), Greenhouse Gas Removals (GGRs), and non-CO2 impacts, and the potential impact of linking the UK and EU Emissions Trading Schemes
3. Providing analytical input to inform decisions on whether, and if so how to account for international aviation emissions in the UK’s Carbon Budgets
4. Providing analytical input to support UK efforts to secure international agreement to greater global action to reduce the environmental impact of aviation in negotiations at the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), through strengthening ICAO’s Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA)
5. Support the Economic Adviser in contributing on behalf of the UK to ICAO technical working groups, potentially including work to monitor progress towards ICAO’s 2050 net zero target, assess options for tightening regulation of aircraft NOX emissions, work to model and evaluate aviation emissions and work to investigate the future supply, demand and price of greenhouse gas removals, as well as possible policy mechanisms that could be used to incentivise more removals, and allow the aviation sector to purchase them to mitigate its emissions
6. Developing and supporting research and analysis on other aviation environmental policies, the interaction between them and other policy options, including market-based and fiscal measures, analytical approaches to modelling them, and implementing these approaches

For further information on the role, please read the attached role profile.

Please note that the role profile is for information purposes only - whilst all elements are relevant to the role, they may not all be assessed during the recruitment process. This job advert will detail exactly what will be assessed during the recruitment process.

Person specification

Essential qualifications/licenses:

1. A valid passport for international travel.

You will be required to provide evidence that you hold any essential qualifications/licenses at some point during the recruitment process. If you cannot provide evidence, your application will be withdrawn.

Required experience:

To be successful in this role you will need to have the following experience:

1. Experience of scoping, designing and delivering economic analysis to influence policy decisions
2. Experience of reviewing and organising data, using it to conduct economic analysis and/or modelling, and drawing logical conclusions
3. Experience of building and managing effective working relationships with people from a range of disciplines and across organisational boundaries.
4. Experience of communicating complex technical subjects to a range of audiences, including Ministers and/or other senior stakeholders.

Additional Information

Working hours, office attendance and travel requirements

Full time roles consist of 37 hours per week.

Whilst we welcome applications from those looking to work with us on a part time basis, there is a business requirement for the successful candidate to be able to work at least 30 hours per week.

This role is suitable for hybrid working, which is a non-contractual arrangement where a combination of workplace and home-based working can be accommodated subject to business requirements.

The expectation at present is a minimum of 60% of your working time a month will be spent at either your designated workplace (one of the locations cited in the advert) or, when required for business reasons, in another office/work location (e.g., London). There may be occasions where you are required to attend above the minimum expectation.

Occasional travel to other offices will be required, which may involve overnight stays.

Licences

Passport Suitable for international travel.

Memberships

You must be a full member of the Government Economic Service (GES) OR eligible to join (Membership - Government Economic Service - GOV.UK).

Hence, academic requirements of the role are that you hold one of the following:

•a 2.1 honours bachelors degree (or international equivalent) with at least 50 per cent of economics in the two final years (or equivalent); or
•a Post Graduate Diploma (or equivalent) or a Masters degree in economics, including a substantial amount of taught macro and microeconomics.

Once assigned to a post, candidates will no longer be part of economist rotation arrangements.

Behaviours

We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:

• Seeing the Big Picture
• Delivering at Pace
• Working Together

We only ask for evidence of these behaviours on your application form:

• Delivering at Pace
• Working Together

Technical skills

We'll assess you against these technical skills during the selection process:

• Government Economic Service technical framework - Application of Knowledge - level 2 - SEO - Practitioner.
• Government Economic Service technical framework - Analysis of Data - level 2 - SEO - Practitioner.
• Government Economic Service technical framework - Effective Communication - level 2 - SEO - Practitioner.

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £44,241, Department for Transport contributes £12,816 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

Being part of our brilliant Civil Service means you will have access to a wide range of fantastic benefits:

• Employer pension contribution of 28.97% of your salary. Read more about Civil Service Pensions here
• 25 days annual leave, increasing by 1 day each year of service (up to a maximum of 30 days annual leave).
• 8 Bank Holidays plus an additional Privilege Day to mark the King’s birthday.
• Access to the staff discount portal.
• Excellent career development opportunities and the potential to undertake professional qualifications relevant to your role paid for by the department, such as CIPD, Prince2, apprenticeships, etc.
• Joining a diverse and inclusive workforce with a range of staff communities to support all our colleagues.
• 24-hour Employee Assistance Programme providing free confidential help and advice for staff.
• Flexible working options where we encourage a great work-life balance.

Find out more about the benefits of working at DfT and its agencies (opens in a new window).

Things you need to know

Artificial intelligence

Artificial intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action. Please see our candidate guidance (opens in a new window) for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.

Selection process details

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours, Experience and Technical skills.

How to apply:

Our selection process ensures a comprehensive assessment of each applicant's qualifications, skills, and potential fit within our organisation.

The selection process for this role will be:

Stage 1: Sift of CV, personal statement and Behaviour questions.

Stage 2: Interview with Presentation

You must be successful at each stage to progress to the next stage.

Stage 1: Sift

At sift, you will be assessed against the following Success Profile elements:

Behaviours – you will be asked to provide a 250-word statement (per behaviour) on the following Behaviours: Delivering at Pace and Working Together.

Experience – you will be asked to provide a CV (unlimited wordcount), and a personal statement (max 1000-words) providing detailed evidence on the following:

• Experience of scoping, designing and delivering economic analysis to influence policy decisions
• Experience of reviewing and organising data, using it to conduct economic analysis and/or modelling, and drawing logical conclusions
• Experience of building and managing effective working relationships with people from a range of disciplines and across organisational boundaries.
• Experience of communicating complex technical subjects to a range of audiences, including Ministers and/or other senior stakeholders.

Further details around what this will entail are listed on the application form.

Should a large number of applications be received, an initial sift may be conducted using the lead Success Profile element, Delivering at Pace. Candidates who pass the initial sift may be progressed to a full sift or progressed straight to assessment/interview.

The sift will take place from the 4th March 2026.

Stage 2: Interview with Presentation

At interview stage, you will be assessed against the following Success Profile elements:

• Behaviours – Seeing the Big Picture.
• Technical:
• Government Economic Service technical framework)- Application of Knowledge – level 2 SEO Practitioner.
• Government Economic Service technical framework)- Effective Communication – level 2 SEO Practitioner.
• Government Economic Service technical framework) - Analysis of Data – level 2 SEO Practitioner.

You will also be required to create and deliver a presentation describing a time when you led the delivery of an analytical project, which will be assessed with the 2 Technical elements below:

• Government Economic Service technical framework)- Application of Knowledge – level 2 SEO Practitioner.
• Government Economic Service technical framework)- Effective Communication – level 2 SEO Practitioner.

Guidance will be provided if you are invited to interview.

The interviews will take place week commencing 16th March 2026.

This interview will be conducted online via Microsoft Teams. Further details will be provided to you should you be selected for interview.

You can find out more about our hiring process, how to apply, and application and interview guidance on our careers site (opens in a new window).

Please note that we will try to meet the dates set out in the advert. There may be occasions when these dates will change.

Further information on the selection process

We will also hold a12-month reserve list for this role, which may lead to potential opportunities beyond the role you applied for. You can read more about our reserve lists here.

Reasonable Adjustments

As a Disability Confident Leader employer, we are committed to ensuring that the recruitment process is fair, accessible and allows all candidates to perform at their best. If a person with a visible or non-visible disability is substantially disadvantaged, we have a duty to make reasonable changes to our processes.

Complete the “Assistance required” section in the “Additional requirements” page of your application form to tell us what changes or help you might need during the recruitment process. For instance, you may need wheelchair access at an interview, or if you’re deaf, a Language Service Professional.

If you need a reasonable adjustment so that you can complete your application, you should contact Government Recruitment Service via dftrecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk as soon as possible before the closing date to discuss your needs.

Document Accessibility

If you are experiencing accessibility problems with any attachments on this advert, please contact the email address in the 'Contact point for applicants' section.

This job advert contains links to the DfT Careers website. Our website provides useful guidance and information that can support you during the application process. If you cannot access the information on our website for any reason, please email DRGComms@dft.gov.uk for assistance.

Further Information

For more information about how we hire, and for useful tips on submitting your application for this role, visit theHow We Hire page of our DfT Careers website. You can find detailed information about the recruitment process and what to expect when applying for a role.

Pre-employment Checking

Applicants who are successful at interview will be, as part of pre-employment screening, subject to a check on the Internal Fraud Database (IFD). This check will provide information about employees who have been dismissed for fraud or dishonesty offences. This check also applies to employees who resign or otherwise leave before being dismissed for fraud or dishonesty had their employment continued. Any applicant’s details held on the IFD will be refused employment.

A candidate is not eligible to apply for a role within the Civil Service if the application is made within a 5-year period following a dismissal for carrying out internal fraud against government.

All External applicants and current employees of accredited non-departmental public bodies (NDPBs) will be required to undergo a Social Media Check. A Social Media Check is a review of your publicly available online activity, typically across platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, X (formerly Twitter), Instagram, and others. The purpose is to identify any public posts or content that could raise concerns for employers, such as:

Hate speech or discriminatory behaviour

Threats or acts of violence

Illegal activity or substance misuse

Sexually explicit material

Extremist views or affiliations

Importantly, this check does not involve hacking into your accounts or accessing private messages. It only considers content you have chosen to make public.

Employers use this kind of screening to help ensure their workplace remains safe, inclusive, and aligned with company values. It’s not about judging your personality or lifestyle—it’s about checking for potential red flags that might affect the role or company culture.

If you have questions or concerns about the social media check, we would be happy to explain in more detail what’s being looked at and how your data is handled securely and fairly.

For further information on National Security Vetting please visit the Demystifying Vetting website.

Feedback

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check.Successful candidates must meet the security requirements before they can be appointed. The level of security needed is security check (opens in a new window).

See our vetting charter (opens in a new window).People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.

Nationality requirements

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

• UK nationals
• nationals of the Republic of Ireland
• nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
• Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

Working for the Civil Service

The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window).The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.

Diversity and Inclusion

The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see theCivil Service People Plan (opens in a new window) and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy (opens in a new window).

Apply and further information

This vacancy is part of the Great Place to Work for Veterans (opens in a new window) initiative.The Civil Service welcomes applications from people who have recently left prison or have an unspent conviction. Read more about prison leaver recruitment (opens in new window).Once this job has closed, the job advert will no longer be available. You may want to save a copy for your records.

Contact point for applicants

Job contact :

• Name : Peter O’Boyle
• Email : Peter.O'Boyle@dft.gov.uk

Recruitment team

• Email : dftrecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk

Further information

If you feel your application has not been treated in accordance with the Recruitment Principles and you wish to make a complaint, in the first instance, you should contact Government Recruitment Services via email: dftrecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk
If you are not satisfied with the response you receive from the Department, you can contact the Civil Service Commission: Visit the Civil Service Commission website Here

Attachments

Role Profile Opens in new window (pdf, 187kB)