Who is Rachel Reeves, the UK’s first female Chancellor of the Exchequer?

Rachel Reeves, Britain’s first female finance minister, is a former children’s chess champion and Bank of England economist who has promised to grow the country’s economy while demonstrating strong fiscal discipline.

Reeves, 45, becomes chancellor of the exchequer after his centre-left Labour party won the UK general election on Thursday in a landslide, ending 14 years of rule by the right-wing Conservatives.

“It is the greatest honour of my life to have been appointed Chancellor of the Exchequer,” Reeves wrote on social media platform X following her appointment by new Prime Minister Keir Starmer.

“To every young woman and man reading this, let today show you that there should be no limits to your ambitions.”

The Labour Party has placed the economy at the heart of its election manifesto, targeting growth and wealth creation as key government priorities, while its emphasis on the latter is not typically associated with the party’s traditionally left-leaning policies.

“Economic growth was the mission of the Labour Party,” Reeves added on Friday.

“Now it’s a national mission. Let’s get to work,” said the married mother of two.

‘Iron Chancellor’

Reeves recently told company bosses that Labour had become “the natural party of British business”, adding that the party would show “iron discipline” over public finances.

The comments drew comparisons with “Iron Lady” Margaret Thatcher, Britain’s first female prime minister.

Unlike Conservative leader Thatcher, who privatized key sectors after becoming prime minister in 1979, Reeves wants a form of renationalization, particularly in the energy sector, taking inspiration from the policy enacted by US President Joe Biden.

Announcement

Labour has promised to create Great British Energy, a public company that would lead funding, alongside the private sector, for the “green” transition away from fossil fuels.

James Wood, senior associate lecturer in political economy at the University of Cambridge, said Labour and Reeves were seeking a “responsible” approach to the public purse.

“When she talks about being an iron chancellor, I think what she means is: we will balance the books and we will be responsible – and we will try to make the British economy work… in a responsible way,” he told AFP.

London-born Reeves tapped into public anger at Sunak’s predecessor Liz Truss, whose unfunded 2022 mini-budget sent the pound tumbling and mortgage rates soaring, worsening the cost of living crisis.

“They want to distance themselves from fiscal irresponsibility by not making big spending promises they can’t deliver,” Wood added.

Banking career

Reeves, whose parents were both teachers, is no stranger to maneuvers that outmaneuver opponents.

She became British women’s chess champion at the age of 14, before studying philosophy, politics and economics at the University of Oxford, followed by a master’s degree at the London School of Economics.

After graduating, she worked as an economist for a decade, first at the Bank of England before moving to the private sector.

While working for British retail bank HBOS, the global financial crisis hit his employer in 2008, resulting in a major bailout, along with other creditors, from Gordon Brown’s Labour government.

best videos

see it all

In 2010, when the Conservatives came to power in a coalition with the Liberal Democrats, Reeves was elected Labour MP for Leeds West in northern England.

Eleven years later, Starmer appointed her as Labour’s finance spokeswoman. Her sister Ellie Reeves is also a Labour MP.

(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed – AFP)

Shankhyaneel Sarkar

Shankhyaneel Sarkar is a senior deputy editor at News18. He covers international affairs

Location: London, United Kingdom (UK)

first published: July 5, 2024, 9:47 PM IST

Fuente