Cabinet minister Michael Gove and his journalist wife Sarah Vine are to separate after almost 20 years of marriage, their spokesman has said.

The high profile couple have agreed to end their relationship and are ‘in the process of finalising their divorce.’

Mr Gove, one of the most senior members of the Government, married Ms Vine in October 2001 and the couple have long been in the public eye.

They met in 1998 while working at The Times and have two children together.

Their spokesman said: ‘Michael and Sarah have agreed to separate and they are in the process of finalising their divorce.

‘They will continue to support their two children and they remain close friends.

‘The family politely ask for privacy at this time and will not be providing any further comment.’

Ms Vine, a columnist for the Daily Mail, wrote a piece last week about Mr Gove’s colleague Matt Hancock, who was ousted from his job as health secretary after pictures of him kissing an aide were published.

Speaking about Mr Hancock’s resignation, Ms Vine claimed Westminster life can ‘drive a wedge between partners’ and ‘changes a person.’

She wrote: ‘These women are still more or less the same person they were when they got married. But their politician men are not.

‘Climbing that far up Westminster’s greasy pole changes a person. And when someone changes, they require something new from a partner.

‘Namely, someone who is as much a courtesan as a companion, one who understands their brilliance and, crucially, is personally invested in it.

‘The problem with the wife who has known you since way before you were king of the world is that she sees through your facade.’

A friend of the couple said: ‘This is a difficult and sad decision for Michael and Sarah after twenty years of marriage.

‘It is an entirely amicable separation and there is no-one else involved. They have drifted apart over the past couple of years but they remain friends. Their absolute priority is the children.’

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