Daniel Taub, the Israeli Foreign Ministry's deputy legal counsel will be the next Israeli ambassador to the UK.

British-born Mr Taub will replace Ron Prosor, who is now Israel’s ambassador the UN.

The appointment was decided by a senior committee at the Foreign Ministry, chaired by director-general Raphael Barak.

But sources claim the Foreign Ministry’s union may mount a legal challenge to the appointment, as Mr Taub is an internal appointment and not a career diplomat.

Mr Taub is a regular spokesman for the Israeli government and has been a member of the Israeli teams in Israel's negotiations with both Syria and the Palestinians, and served as head of the Israeli side of the Israeli-Palestinian Culture of Peace negotiations.

He also wrote the popular Israeli soap opera HeChatzer, about Orthodox Jews and has spoken regularly at Limmud.

He holds degrees from the University of Oxford and Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government. He currently lives in Jerusalem with his wife Zehava and his children.