HM Treasury
Encyclopedia
Public finance
Public finance is the revenue and expenditure of public authoritiesThe purview of public finance is considered to be threefold: governmental effects on efficient allocation of resources, distribution of income, and macroeconomic stabilization.-Overview:The proper role of government provides a...
policy and economic policy
Economic policy
Economic policy refers to the actions that governments take in the economic field. It covers the systems for setting interest rates and government budget as well as the labor market, national ownership, and many other areas of government interventions into the economy.Such policies are often...
. The Treasury maintains the Combined Online Information System
Combined Online Information System
The Combined Online Information System is a database containing HM Treasury's detailed analysis of departmental spending under thousands of category headings. The database contains around 24 million lines of data...
(COINS) containing a detailed analysis of departmental spending under thousands of category headings.
History
The Treasury of the United Kingdom traces its origins to the Treasury of the Kingdom of EnglandKingdom of England
The Kingdom of England was, from 927 to 1707, a sovereign state to the northwest of continental Europe. At its height, the Kingdom of England spanned the southern two-thirds of the island of Great Britain and several smaller outlying islands; what today comprises the legal jurisdiction of England...
, which had come into existence by 1126, in the reign of Henry I
Henry I of England
Henry I was the fourth son of William I of England. He succeeded his elder brother William II as King of England in 1100 and defeated his eldest brother, Robert Curthose, to become Duke of Normandy in 1106...
. The Treasury emerged out of the Royal Household
Royal Household
A Royal Household in ancient and medieval monarchies formed the basis for the general government of the country as well as providing for the needs of the sovereign and his relations....
, and served as the location where the king kept his treasures. The head of the Treasury was called the Lord Treasurer. Starting in Tudor
Tudor dynasty
The Tudor dynasty or House of Tudor was a European royal house of Welsh origin that ruled the Kingdom of England and its realms, including the Lordship of Ireland, later the Kingdom of Ireland, from 1485 until 1603. Its first monarch was Henry Tudor, a descendant through his mother of a legitimised...
times, the Lord Treasurer became one of the chief officers of state, and competed with the Lord Chancellor
Lord Chancellor
The Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain, or Lord Chancellor, is a senior and important functionary in the government of the United Kingdom. He is the second highest ranking of the Great Officers of State, ranking only after the Lord High Steward. The Lord Chancellor is appointed by the Sovereign...
for the principal place. In 1667 Charles II of England
Charles II of England
Charles II was monarch of the three kingdoms of England, Scotland, and Ireland.Charles II's father, King Charles I, was executed at Whitehall on 30 January 1649, at the climax of the English Civil War...
was responsible for appointing George Downing
Sir George Downing, 1st Baronet
Sir George Downing, 1st Baronet was an Anglo-Irish soldier, statesman, and diplomat. Downing Street in London is named after him. As Treasury Secretary he is credited with instituting major reforms in public finance. His influence was substantial on the passage and substance of the mercantilist...
, the builder of Downing Street
Downing Street
Downing Street in London, England has for over two hundred years housed the official residences of two of the most senior British cabinet ministers: the First Lord of the Treasury, an office now synonymous with that of Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, and the Second Lord of the Treasury, an...
, to radically reform the Treasury and the collection of taxes.
Beginning in the 17th century, the Treasury was frequently entrusted to a commission, rather than to a single individual, and after 1714 it was always in commission. The commissioners were referred to as Lords of the Treasury and were given a number based on their seniority. Eventually, the First Lord of the Treasury
First Lord of the Treasury
The First Lord of the Treasury is the head of the commission exercising the ancient office of Lord High Treasurer in the United Kingdom, and is now always also the Prime Minister...
came to be seen as the natural head of the government, and from Robert Walpole
Robert Walpole
Robert Walpole, 1st Earl of Orford, KG, KB, PC , known before 1742 as Sir Robert Walpole, was a British statesman who is generally regarded as having been the first Prime Minister of Great Britain....
on began to be known, unofficially, as the prime minister
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the Head of Her Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom. The Prime Minister and Cabinet are collectively accountable for their policies and actions to the Sovereign, to Parliament, to their political party and...
. Before 1827, the First Lord of the Treasury, when a commoner, also held the office of Chancellor of the Exchequer
Chancellor of the Exchequer
The Chancellor of the Exchequer is the title held by the British Cabinet minister who is responsible for all economic and financial matters. Often simply called the Chancellor, the office-holder controls HM Treasury and plays a role akin to the posts of Minister of Finance or Secretary of the...
, while if the First Lord was a peer, the Second Lord would usually serve as Chancellor. Since 1827, the Chancellor of the Exchequer has always been Second Lord of the Treasury.
Banknote issue
Banknotes in the UK are normally issuedBank of England note issues
The Bank of England, which is now the Central Bank of the United Kingdom, has issued banknotes since 1694. Since 1970, its new series of notes have featured portraits of British historical figures. Of the eight banks authorised to issue banknotes in the UK, only the Bank of England can issue...
by the Bank of England
Bank of England
The Bank of England is the central bank of the United Kingdom and the model on which most modern central banks have been based. Established in 1694, it is the second oldest central bank in the world...
and a number of commercial banks (see Banknotes of the pound sterling). At the start of the First World War, the Currency and Bank Notes Act 1914 was passed which gave the Treasury temporary powers for issuing banknotes to the value of £1 and 10/- (ten shillings) in the UK. Treasury notes had full legal tender status and were not convertible for gold through the Bank of England, replacing the gold coin in circulation to prevent a run on sterling and to enable raw material purchases for armament production. These notes featured an image of King George V
George V of the United Kingdom
George V was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 through the First World War until his death in 1936....
- Bank of England notes did not begin to display an image of the monarch until 1960. They replaced coins in circulation, were produced by the Treasury, not the Bank of England. The wording on each note was UNITED KINGDOM OF GREAT BRITAIN AND IRELAND — Currency notes are Legal Tender for the payment of any amount — Issued by the Lords Commissioners of His Majesty's Treasury under the Authority of Act of Parliament (4 & 5 Geo. V c.14).
The promise (never adhered to) was their removal from circulation after the war had finished and the return to the circulation of gold as money.
The notes were issued until 1928, when the Currency and Banknotes Act 1928
Currency and Banknotes Act 1928
The Currency and Banknotes Act 1928 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom relating to banknotes. Among other things, it makes it a criminal offence to deface a banknote ....
returned note-issuing powers to the banks.
Whips
Some of the Government WhipsWhip (politics)
A whip is an official in a political party whose primary purpose is to ensure party discipline in a legislature. Whips are a party's "enforcers", who typically offer inducements and threaten punishments for party members to ensure that they vote according to the official party policy...
are also associated in name with the Treasury: the Chief Whip
Chief Whip
The Chief Whip is a political office in some legislatures assigned to an elected member whose task is to administer the whipping system that ensures that members of the party attend and vote as the party leadership desires.-The Whips Office:...
is nominally Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury and traditionally had an office in 12 Downing Street
Downing Street
Downing Street in London, England has for over two hundred years housed the official residences of two of the most senior British cabinet ministers: the First Lord of the Treasury, an office now synonymous with that of Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, and the Second Lord of the Treasury, an...
. Some of the other Whips are nominally a Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury though these are all members of the House of Commons
British House of Commons
The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 650 members , who are known as Members...
. This led to the Government frontbench in the Commons being known as the Treasury Bench. However, since the Whips no longer have any effective ministerial role in the Treasury, they are usually not listed as Treasury ministers.
Ministers
The Treasury Ministers are as follows:| Minister | Rank | Portfolio | |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Rt Hon George Osborne George Osborne George Gideon Oliver Osborne, MP is a British Conservative politician. He is the Chancellor of the Exchequer of the United Kingdom, a role to which he was appointed in May 2010, and has been the Member of Parliament for Tatton since 2001.Osborne is part of the old Anglo-Irish aristocracy, known in... MP |
Chancellor of the Exchequer Chancellor of the Exchequer The Chancellor of the Exchequer is the title held by the British Cabinet minister who is responsible for all economic and financial matters. Often simply called the Chancellor, the office-holder controls HM Treasury and plays a role akin to the posts of Minister of Finance or Secretary of the... Second Lord of the Treasury Second Lord of the Treasury The Second Lord of the Treasury is a member of the commission exercising the ancient office of Lord High Treasurer in the United Kingdom. Since 1827, the Chancellor of the Exchequer has always simultaneously held the office of Second Lord of the Treasury when he has not also been the Prime Minister... |
Overall responsibility | |
| The Rt Hon Danny Alexander Danny Alexander Daniel Grian Alexander is a British Liberal Democrat politician who has been Chief Secretary to the Treasury since 2010. He has been the Member of Parliament for the Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch & Strathspey constituency since 2005.... MP |
Chief Secretary to the Treasury Chief Secretary to the Treasury The Chief Secretary to the Treasury is the third most senior ministerial position in HM Treasury, after the Prime Minister and the Chancellor of the Exchequer . In recent years, the office holder has usually been given a junior position in the British Cabinet... |
Public expenditure, devolution matters | |
| Mark Hoban Mark Hoban Mark Gerard Hoban MP is a British Conservative Party politician and the Member of Parliament for Fareham, and the Financial Secretary to the Treasury.-Early life:... MP |
Financial Secretary to the Treasury Financial Secretary to the Treasury Financial Secretary to the Treasury is a junior Ministerial post in the British Treasury. It is the 4th most significant Ministerial role within the Treasury after the Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, and the Paymaster General... |
Financial services, personal savings and pensions | |
| David Gauke David Gauke David Michael Gauke British Conservative Party politician. He is the Member of Parliament for South West Hertfordshire and current Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury.-Early life:... MP |
Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury The Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury is a junior ministerial post in the British Treasury, ranked below the Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, the Paymaster General and the Financial Secretary to the Treasury, and alongside the Economic Secretary to the Treasury.... |
UK tax system, HM Revenue and Customs, Valuation Office Agency | |
| Chloe Smith Chloe Smith Chloe Rebecca Smith is a British politician and the Conservative Member of Parliament for Norwich North. She was elected to the seat in a by-election on 23 July 2009 following the resignation of Labour MP Ian Gibson after the MPs' expenses scandal.-Early life:Born in Ashford, Kent, she was aged 3... MP |
Economic Secretary to the Treasury Economic Secretary to the Treasury The Economic Secretary to the Treasury is the fifth most senior ministerial post in the UK Treasury, after the Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, the Paymaster-General and the Financial Secretary... |
Environmental taxation, tax credits, charities, stamp duty, Royal Mint Royal Mint The Royal Mint is the body permitted to manufacture, or mint, coins in the United Kingdom. The Mint originated over 1,100 years ago, but since 2009 it operates as Royal Mint Ltd, a company which has an exclusive contract with HM Treasury to supply all coinage for the UK... |
|
| Lord Sassoon James Sassoon, Baron Sassoon James Meyer Sassoon, Baron Sassoon, Kt, FCA is the Commercial Secretary to the Treasury, a ministerial position in HM Treasury, the UK's finance ministry. Sassoon had a long career in the financial sector and previously served in various roles at the Treasury from 2002 to 2008, at which point he... Kt Knight Bachelor The rank of Knight Bachelor is a part of the British honours system. It is the most basic rank of a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not as a member of one of the organised Orders of Chivalry... |
Commercial Secretary to the Treasury Commercial Secretary to the Treasury The Commercial Secretary to the Treasury, or City Minister, is a United Kingdom Government minister in HM Treasury who ranks as a Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State. The position has a wide range of duties related to business, and the financial sector in particular... |
Enterprise & productivity, corporate finance, financial crime |
| Key | Conservative Conservative Party (UK) The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House... |
|---|---|
| Liberal Democrat Liberal Democrats The Liberal Democrats are a social liberal political party in the United Kingdom which supports constitutional and electoral reform, progressive taxation, wealth taxation, human rights laws, cultural liberalism, banking reform and civil liberties .The party was formed in 1988 by a merger of the... |
The Paymaster General, The Rt Hon Francis Maude
Francis Maude
Francis Anthony Aylmer Maude is a British politician. A member of the Conservative Party, he currently serves as the Minister for the Cabinet Office and Paymaster General, and as a Member of Parliament representing the constituency of Horsham...
MP is also a Treasury Minister but works from the Cabinet Office
Cabinet Office
The Cabinet Office is a department of the Government of the United Kingdom responsible for supporting the Prime Minister and Cabinet of the United Kingdom....
.
Permanent Secretaries
The position of Permanent SecretaryPermanent Secretary
The Permanent secretary, in most departments officially titled the permanent under-secretary of state , is the most senior civil servant of a British Government ministry, charged with running the department on a day-to-day basis...
of HM Treasury is generally regarded as the second most influential in the British Civil Service
British Civil Service
Her Majesty's Home Civil Service, also known as the Home Civil Service, is the permanent bureaucracy of Crown employees that supports Her Majesty's Government - the government of the United Kingdom, composed of a Cabinet of ministers chosen by the prime minister, as well as the devolved...
; the last two incumbents have gone on to be Cabinet Secretary
Cabinet Secretary
A Cabinet Secretary is almost always a senior official who provides services and advice to a Cabinet of Ministers. In many countries, the position can have considerably wider functions and powers, including general responsibility for the entire civil service...
, the only post out-ranking it.
- Francis Mowatt (1894–1903)
- George MurrayGeorge Murray (civil servant)Sir George Herbert Murray GCB GCVO ISO PC was a British civil servant.Murray was born in Southfleet, Kent, England, the son of the village's rector. He was educated at Harrow School and Christ Church, Oxford. He entered the Foreign Office in 1873 and transferred to HM Treasury in 1880...
(1903–1911) - John Bradbury (1913–1919)
- Robert ChalmersRobert Chalmers, 1st Baron ChalmersRobert Chalmers, 1st Baron Chalmers GCB PC , was a British civil servant.-Background and education:Chalmers was born in Stoke Newington, Middlesex, the son of John Chalmers and his wife Julia...
(1916–1919) - Warren FisherWarren FisherSir Warren Fisher was a British civil servant.Fisher was born in Croydon, London on 22 September 1879. He was educated at the Dragon School , Winchester College and Hertford College, Oxford University...
(1919–1939) - Horace Wilson (1939–1942)
- Richard Hopkins (1942–1945)
- Edward Bridges (1945–1956)
- Roger MakinsRoger Makins, 1st Baron SherfieldRoger Mellor Makins, 1st Baron Sherfield, GCB, GCMG, FRS , was a British diplomat who served as British Ambassador to the United States from 1953 to 1956....
(1956–1959) - Frank Lee (1960–1962)
- Norman BrookNorman Brook, 1st Baron NormanbrookNorman Craven Brook, 1st Baron Normanbrook GCB, PC , known as Sir Norman Brook between 1946 and 1964, was a British civil servant...
(1956–1963) - Laurence Helsby (1963–1968)
- William ArmstrongWilliam Armstrong, Baron Armstrong of SandersteadWilliam Armstrong, Baron Armstrong of Sanderstead GCB, MVO, PC was a British civil servant and banker.The son of William Armstrong and Priscilla Hopkins, he was born in Clapton in London. Armstrong was educated at Bec School in Tooting and Exeter College, Oxford...
(1962–1968) - Douglas Allen (1968–1974)
- Douglas Wass (1974–1983)
- Peter MiddletonPeter MiddletonSir Peter Edward Middleton GCB is a British UK Chairman, Marsh & McLennan Companies, former banker and current Chancellor of the University of Sheffield.-Life:...
(1983–1991) - Terence Burns (1991–1998)
- Andrew TurnbullAndrew Turnbull, Baron TurnbullAndrew Turnbull, Baron Turnbull, KCB, CVO was the head of Her Majesty's Civil Service and Cabinet Secretary between 2002 and 2005 when he was succeeded by Sir Gus O'Donnell....
(1998–2002) - Gus O'DonnellGus O'DonnellSir Augustine Thomas "Gus" O'Donnell GCB is a British civil servant, who is the current Cabinet Secretary, the highest rank in the British Civil Service. He is consequently, under current practice, Head of the Civil Service, which means he has authority over all civil servants except those who are...
(2002–2005) - Sir Nicholas Macpherson (since 2005)
The Second Permanent Secretary is Tom Scholar, the managing director of the International and Finance division. With effect from June 2007, the post of Head of the Government Economic Service
Government Economic Service
The Government Economic Service was founded in 1964 by Sir Alec Cairncross. It is a professional grouping of public sector economists who work across some 40 government departments and agencies, the Bank of England is also a Corporate Member of the GES. The GES recruits economists on behalf of the...
(GES) is held jointly by the Managing Director of Macroeconomic and Fiscal Policy in HM Treasury, Dave Ramsden
Dave Ramsden
David Edward John Ramsden CBE is a senior British civil servant, serving as the Managing Director of Macroeconomic and Fiscal Policy in HM Treasury...
, and Vicky Pryce
Vicky Pryce
Vicky Pryce CB is an economist, and former Joint Head of the United Kingdom's Government Economic Service.-Early life:She was born in Athens, the daughter of Nicolas and Voula Courmouzis...
, Chief Economist in the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills is a ministerial department of the United Kingdom Government created on 5 June 2009 by the merger of the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills and the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform .-Ministers:The BIS...
. The previous Head of the GES was Sir Nick Stern
Nicholas Stern
Nicholas Herbert Stern, Baron Stern of Brentford, Kt, FBA is a British economist and academic. He is IG Patel Professor of Economics and Government, Chair of the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment at the London School of Economics , and 2010 Professor of Collège de...
. Management support for GES members is provided by the Economists in Government team, which is located in HM Treasury's building.
Executive Agencies of HM Treasury
- Asset Protection AgencyAsset Protection AgencyThe Asset Protection Agency is an executive agency of the Government of the United Kingdom, operating as part of HM Treasury. The Agency was created in response to the late-2000s recession to implement the Asset Protection Scheme, part of the 2009 United Kingdom bank rescue package.-External links:*...
- The Royal MintRoyal MintThe Royal Mint is the body permitted to manufacture, or mint, coins in the United Kingdom. The Mint originated over 1,100 years ago, but since 2009 it operates as Royal Mint Ltd, a company which has an exclusive contract with HM Treasury to supply all coinage for the UK...
reporting to the Exchequer Secretary - UK Debt Management OfficeUK Debt Management OfficeThe UK Debt Management Office , was established on 1 April 1998. The DMO is responsible for carrying out the Government's debt management policy of minimising financing costs over the long term, taking account of risk, and managing the aggregate cash needs of the Exchequer in the most...
reporting to the Financial Services Secretary
Other bodies reporting to Treasury Ministers
- National Savings and InvestmentsNational Savings and InvestmentsNational Savings and Investments , formerly called the Post Office Savings Bank and National Savings, is a state-owned savings bank in the United Kingdom. It is an executive agency of the Chancellor of the Exchequer...
- Her Majesty's Revenue and CustomsHer Majesty's Revenue and CustomsHer Majesty's Revenue and Customs is a non-ministerial department of the UK Government responsible for the collection of taxes and the payment of some forms of state support....
, for which the Minister is the Financial Secretary- Valuation Office Agency, an agency of HM Revenue and Customs
- Office of Tax SimplificationOffice of Tax SimplificationThe Office of Tax Simplification is an office of HM Treasury, part of the Government of the United Kingdom. The office was created on 20 July 2010 to identify areas where complexities in the tax system for both businesses and individual taxpayers can be reduced and to publish their findings for the...
- Office of Budget Responsibility
- UK Financial Investments LimitedUK Financial Investments LimitedUK Financial Investments Ltd is a company set up in November 2008 by the UK Government to manage its shareholding in banks subscribing to its recapitalisation fund. They include Lloyds Banking Group , Royal Bank of Scotland Group and Northern Rock...
History of Treasury Main Building
The Treasury Main Building at 1 Horse Guards Road, often referred to as the Government Offices Great George Street ('GOGGS'), was designed by John Brydon following a competition. Construction took place in two phases: the West end was completed in 1908 and the East end was completed in 1917. It was originally built as offices for Board of EducationBoard of education
A board of education or a school board or school committee is the title of the board of directors or board of trustees of a school, local school district or higher administrative level....
, the Local Government Board
Local Government Board
The Local Government Board was a British Government supervisory body overseeing local administration in England and Wales from 1871 to 1919.The LGB was created by the Local Government Board Act 1871 The Local Government Board (LGB) was a British Government supervisory body overseeing local...
and the local Ministry of Works Office: HM Treasury only moved in the building in 1940. A major refurbishment of the building was completed under a PFI
Private Finance Initiative
The private finance initiative is a way of creating "public–private partnerships" by funding public infrastructure projects with private capital...
contract by Bovis Lend Lease
Bovis Lend Lease
Lend Lease Project Management & Construction is the international project management and construction division of Lend Lease Group.-History:...
in 2004.
See also
- List of Commissioners of the Treasury
- List of Lord Treasurers
- Lord High TreasurerLord High TreasurerThe post of Lord High Treasurer or Lord Treasurer was an English government position and has been a British government position since the Act of Union of 1707. A holder of the post would be the third highest ranked Great Officer of State, below the Lord High Chancellor and above the Lord President...
- United Kingdom budgetUnited Kingdom budgetThe United Kingdom budget deals with HM Treasury budgeting the revenues gathered by Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs and expenditures of public sector departments, in compliance with government policy.Adjustment is achieved with the GDP deflator....
- Economy of the United KingdomEconomy of the United KingdomThe economy of the United Kingdom is the sixth-largest national economy in the world measured by nominal GDP and seventh-largest measured by purchasing power parity , and the third-largest in Europe measured by nominal GDP and second-largest measured by PPP...