Bruce’s early career in the UK civil service covered a wide range of national security policy and operational roles in the Ministry of Defence and Cabinet Office, including as Head of the Nuclear Accident Response Organisation and in the Cabinet Office Secretariat dealing with terrorism and major emergencies, as well as the Gulf and Balkans conflicts.  He was appointed in 2004 to be Director of the Civil Contingencies Secretariat in the Cabinet Office, leading work across the public and private sectors to improve the UK’s readiness to respond to major emergencies. In that role, he led the central Government response to a wide range of domestic emergencies, including animal disease outbreaks, severe flooding and weather events, major industrial accidents, severe disruption to the provision of basic services to citizens and the swine flu pandemic of 2009.  After retiring from the Civil Service, Bruce has provided support to a number of countries seeking to develop their risk and emergency management capabilities.