George Osborne From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia For other people named George Osborne, see George Osborne (disambiguation). Page semi-protected The Right Honourable George Osborne MP George osborne hi.jpg Chancellor of the Exchequer Incumbent Assumed office 11 May 2010 Prime Minister David Cameron Preceded by Alistair Darling Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer In office 5 May 2005 – 11 May 2010 Leader Michael Howard David Cameron Preceded by Oliver Letwin Succeeded by Alistair Darling Shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury In office 14 June 2004 – 5 May 2005 Leader Michael Howard Preceded by Howard Flight Succeeded by Philip Hammond Member of Parliament for Tatton Incumbent Assumed office 7 June 2001 Preceded by Martin Bell Majority 14,487 (32%) Personal details Born Gideon Oliver Osborne 23 May 1971 (age 43) Paddington, London, England Political party Conservative Spouse(s) Frances Howell (m. 1998) Children Luke; Liberty Residence 11 Downing Street (Official) Alma mater St Pauls School Magdalen College, Oxford Religion Anglican[citation needed] Website Official website; Constituency website George Gideon Oliver Osborne[1] (born Gideon Oliver Osborne; 23 May 1971)[2] is a British Conservative Party politician who has been the Chancellor of the Exchequer and Second Lord of the Treasury since 2010 and the Member of Parliament for Tatton since 2001. Osborne comes from one of the oldest Anglo-Irish aristocracies, and is the heir apparent to the Osborne baronetcy.[3][4] He was educated at St Pauls School, London, and Magdalen College, Oxford, before working for the Conservative Party as a researcher, special adviser, speechwriter, and strategist. In 2005, he ran David Camerons successful leadership campaign and became Shadow Chancellor. Contents 1 Early life and education 2 Political career 2.1 Conservative Research Department 2.2 Member of Parliament 2.3 Shadow Cabinet 2.3.1 Comments on Gordon Brown 2.3.2 Run on the pound 2.4 The Deripaska claim 2.5 Expenses 2.6 2010 general election campaign 3 Political views 4 Chancellor of the Exchequer 5 Personal life 6 See also 7 References 8 Further reading 9 External links Early life and education Osbornes ancestor King Henry III. Osborne was born in Paddington, London,[5] and is the eldest of four sons. His father, Sir Peter Osborne, 17th Baronet, co-founded the firm of fabric and wallpapers designers Osborne & Little.[6][7] His mother is Felicity Alexandra Loxton-Peacock, the daughter of artist Clarisse Loxton Peacock.[2][8] His mother was a Labour voter, an anti-Vietnam War marcher and worked for Amnesty International.[citation needed] Through Anne Parsons, the mother of Sir John Osborne, 7th Baronet, Osborne is the 21st great grandson of King Henry III of England. Originally named Gideon Oliver,[2] he changed his name to George when he was 13. In an interview in July 2005, Osborne said: It was my small act of rebellion. I never liked it. When I finally told my mother she said, Nor do I. So I decided to be George after my grandfather, who was a war hero. Life was easier as a George; it was a straightforward name.[9] Osborne was educated at independent schools: Norland Place School, Colet Court and St Pauls School.[10] He was given a demyship to Magdalen College, University of Oxford,[2] where he received a 2:1 bachelors degree in Modern History.[7] At Oxford, he edited the universitys Isis magazine,[11] and was a member of the Bullingdon Club.[11] He also attended Davidson College in North Carolina for a semester as a Dean Rusk Scholar.[12] After graduating in 1992, Osborne did a few part-time jobs including as a data entry clerk, typing the details of recently deceased into a NHS computer database.[13] He also briefly worked for a week at Selfridges, mainly re-folding towels.[13] In 1993, Osborne intended to pursue a career in journalism. He was shortlisted for but failed to gain a place on The Times trainee scheme, and instead did freelance work on the Peterborough diary column of The Daily Telegraph. Some time later, an Oxford friend of his, journalist George Bridges, alerted Osborne to a research vacancy at Conservative Central Office.[13] Political career Conservative Research Department Osborne joined the Conservative Research Department in 1994 and became head of its Political Section. One of his first roles was to go to Blackpool and observe the October 1994 Labour Conference.[14] Between 1995 and 1997 he worked as special adviser to the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food Douglas Hogg (during the BSE crisis) and worked in the Political Office at 10 Downing Street. In 1997, Osborne worked on Prime Minister John Majors campaign team in the run-up to the Tories heavy election defeat. After the election, he again considered journalism, approaching The Times to be a leader writer, though nothing came of it. Between 1997 and 2001, he worked for then Conservative leader William Hague as a speechwriter and Political Secretary. In this role he helped prepare Hague for the weekly session of Prime ministers questions, often playing the role of Prime Minister Tony Blair. Under the successive leaderships of Michael Howard and David Cameron he remained on the Prime Ministers Questions team. Member of Parliament Elected as the Member of Parliament for Tatton, Cheshire, in June 2001, Osborne succeeded the Independent MP Martin Bell, who had defeated the controversial former Conservative minister Neil Hamilton at the 1997 election but kept to his promise not to stand again at the 2001 election. Osborne won with a majority of 8,611 over the Labour candidate, becoming (at that time) the youngest Conservative MP in the House of Commons. Osborne was a strong supporter of the 2003 invasion of Iraq.[15] At the 2005 election, he was re-elected with an increased majority of 11,731 (51.8% of the vote) and in 2010 increased his majority still further to 14,487. Shadow Cabinet Osborne speaking at a podium, gesturing with his hands. George Osborne at Conservative Spring Forum 2006 in Manchester. In September 2004, Osborne was appointed by Michael Howard to the Shadow Cabinet as Shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury. Following the 2005 general election, he was promoted to Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer at the young age of 33 by the then-Conservative Party leader Michael Howard. Howard had initially offered the post to William Hague, who turned it down. Press reports suggest that Howards second choice for the post was in fact David Cameron, who also rejected the job as he preferred to take on a major public service portfolio (he was made Shadow Education Secretary). Thus Howard turned to Osborne as his third choice for the role.[16] His promotion prompted speculation he would run for leadership of the Conservative Party when Howard stepped down, but he ruled himself out within a week.[17] Osborne served as campaign manager for David Camerons leadership campaign, and kept the Shadow Chancellors post when Cameron became leader later that year. In 2009 when David Cameron was asked whether or not he would be willing to sack a close colleague such as Osborne, he stated, With George, the answer is yes. He stayed in my shadow cabinet not because he is a friend, not because we are godfathers to each others children but because he is the right person to do the job. I know and he knows that if that was not the case he would not be there. [18] Osborne has expressed an interest in the ideas of tax simplification (including the idea of flat tax). He set up a Tax Reform Commission in October 2005 to investigate ideas for how to create a flatter, simpler tax system. The system then proposed would reduce the income tax rate to a flat 22%, and increase personal allowance from £4,435 to £10,000-£15,500. The idea of a flat tax is not included in the current Conservative party manifesto.[19] Each year between 2006 and 2009, Osborne attended the annual Bilderberg Conference, a meeting of influential people in business, finance and politics.[20] Comments on Gordon Brown During Osbornes response to the Chancellor of the Exchequer Gordon Browns Pre-Budget Report on 5 December 2005, Osborne accused Brown of being a Chancellor past his sell by date, a Chancellor holding Britain back. In an interview the same week, he also referred to Brown as brutal and unpleasant.[21] In October 2006 Osborne was rebuked by the Speaker of the House of Commons when he attacked the Chancellor at Oral Questions to the Chancellor by citing a comment attributed to the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions John Hutton, describing the Chancellor as likely to make an effing awful Prime Minister.[22] It was widely suggested that Osborne was leading an assault on Brown which would allow the Conservatives to discredit him without damaging David Camerons public image.[22][23][24] Osborne faced criticism from some quarters for appearing to suggest that Brown was faintly autistic. After talking about his ability to recall odd facts in an interview, a host suggested that Osborne may have been faintly autistic; Osborne responded by saying that Were not getting onto Gordon Brown yet.[25] Run on the pound On 14 November 2008, in an intervention described by the BBCs Nick Robinson as pretty extraordinary,[26] Osborne spoke out warning that the more the government borrows the less attractive sterling becomes. He said: We are in danger, if the government is not careful, of having a proper sterling collapse, a run on the pound. Labelling Gordon Browns tactic as a scorched-earth policy, which a future Conservative government would have to clear up, Osborne continued: His view is he probably wont win the next election. The Tories can clear this mess up after Ive gone. [26] Stanley Kalms, a prominent supporter of David Davis in the 2005 leadership election, told the BBC that former Shadow Home Secretary David Davis would be more appropriate as shadow chancellor.[26] The Deripaska claim In October 2008, Osbornes school and university friend the financier Nathaniel Rothschild stated that George Osborne had tried to solicit a £50,000 donation from the Russian aluminium magnate Oleg Deripaska, which would have been a violation of the law against political donations by foreign citizens.[27][28] Rothschild wrote: [I]t turns out that your obsession with Mr. Mandelson is trivial in light of Mr. Osbornes actions. I also think it ill behoves all political parties to try and make capital at the expense of another in such circumstances. Perhaps in future it would be better if all involved accepted the age old adage that private parties are just that. [29] Rothschild had hosted Deripaska, Osborne and Lord Mandelson at a party in his villa in Corfu. The alleged solicitation of a donation occurred on Deripaskas yacht during the party.[30] The Electoral Commission received a formal complaint initiated in a letter by the Liberal Democrats Home Affairs Spokesman, Chris Huhne, requesting them to investigate the claims against Osborne. The Commission rejected the claims and said it saw no information suggesting an offence.[31][32] The story was coined by the press as Yachtgate.[33] Expenses In 2009, he received criticism for the way he had handled his expenses, after he was found to have flipped his second home,[34] changing which property he designated as his second home to pay less capital gains tax. The Lib Dems estimated he owed £55,000 to the public purse as a result of this.[35] He had previously paid back £1,193 on overpayments on his mortgage and chauffeur fares[36] after a complaint from a Labour activist, and it also emerged that he had claimed £47 for two copies of a DVD of his own speech on value for taxpayers money.[37] Parliaments standards commissioners report found that although Mr Osborne had breached the rules the offence was unintended and relatively minor. Osborne said he had received flawed advice and not benefited personally.[38] 2010 general election campaign During the 2010 general election campaign, Osborne was considered to have been sidelined due to his perceived unpopularity and the perception as a weak link by both the Liberal Democrat and Labour strategists.[39] Political views The Financial Times describes Osborne as metropolitan and socially liberal. He is hawkish on foreign policy with links to Washington neo-conservatives and ideologically committed to cutting the state. A pragmatic Eurosceptic.[40] There is evidence of this commitment to cutting the state in his partys manifesto, with Osborne and the Conservatives seeking to cut the deficit faster and deeper than any other main party as well as committing to various tax cuts such as inheritance tax and national insurance. According to an IFS report before the 2010 election,[41] the Conservatives needed to find more money from cuts beyond what they had outlined than any other major party, although the report was also critical of Labour and the Lib Dems. Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne at an official visit to China in October 2013 Osborne was appointed Chancellor of the Exchequer on 11 May 2010 and, as per custom with Cabinet Ministers, was sworn in as a Privy Counsellor the next day.[42] Osborne acceded to the chancellorship in the continuing wake of the financial crisis. Two of his first acts were setting up the Office of Budget Responsibility and commissioning a government-wide spending review, to conclude in autumn 2010, to set limits on departmental spending until 2014–15.[43] Osborne set himself the target of reducing the UKs deficit to the point that, in the financial year 2015–16, the total public debt would be falling as a fraction of GDP.[44] On 24 May 2010, Osborne outlined £6.2bn cuts: We simply cannot afford to increase public debt at the rate of £3bn each week. [45] Leaked Treasury documents the next month revealed that Osborne anticipated his tighter spending would lead to 1.3 million jobs lost over the course of the parliament.[46] Osborne has termed those who object to his policy deficit-deniers.[47] In July 2010, Osborne, seeking cuts of up to 25 per cent in government spending to tackle the deficit, said that taking on the £20 billion cost of building four new Vanguard-class submarine to bear Trident would require a severe reduction in the rest of the Ministry of Defence budget. The Chancellor insisted that Trident had to be considered as part of the MoDs core funding. He said, The Trident costs, I have made it absolutely clear, are part of the defence budget. He warned that if Trident was considered core funding, there would have to be severe restrictions in the way that Britain operated militarily, amid suggestions that regiments could be axed, or, potentially, the Royal Air Force and Royal Navy amalgamated. Liam Fox said, To take the capital cost would make it very difficult to maintain what we are currently doing in terms of capability.[48] Osborne presented the Governments Spending Review on 20 October, which fixed spending budgets for each government department up to 2014–15.[49][50] Before and after becoming chancellor, Osborne had alleged that the UK was on the verge of bankruptcy,[51][52] though this hyperbolic and inaccurate assertion was criticised by the Treasury Select Committee and others as an effort to try and justify his programme of spending cuts.[53][54] On 4 October 2010, in a speech at the Conservative conference in Birmingham, Osborne announced a cap on the overall amount of benefits a family can receive from the state, estimated to be around £500 a week from 2013. It has been estimated this could result in 50,000 unemployed families losing an average of £93 a week. He also announced that he would end the universal entitlement to child benefit, and removed the entitlement from people on the 40% and 50% income tax rates from 2013.[55] In February 2011 Osborne announced Project Merlin whereby banks will lend about £190bn to businesses this year – including £76bn to small firms – curb bonuses and reveal some salary details of their top earners. The Bank of England will monitor whether loans targets are being met. Liberal Democrat Treasury spokesman Lord Oakeshott resigned after the agreement was announced. This was in addition to the government increasing its levy on banks to £2.5bn this year – raising an extra £800m. HSBC, Barclays, Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) and Lloyds Banking Group have signed up to the Project Merlin agreement, while Santander has agreed to the lending parts of the deal. Other pledges include providing £200m of capital for David Camerons Big Society Bank, which is supposed to finance community projects.[56] In November 2011, Osborne sold Northern Rock to Richard Bransons Virgin Money for a price that could range from £747m to £1bn.[57] Northern Rock, the first British bank in 150 years to suffer a bank run, had been taken into public ownership in 2008, then divided into two entities on 1 January 2010 – the other half being Northern Rock.[58] The Independent described the entity sold as the detoxified arm of the bank, while saying the taxpayers retained responsibility for £20bn of toxic assets such as bad debts and closed mortgages. The newspaper quoted Ed Balls, the shadow Chancellor: It is being sold off at a loss and I think there is a question as to whether or not this is the best time, with the markets in turmoil to get the best deal. It quoted Osborne that the takeover would create a powerful new presence on the high street offering real choice and competition for the public, and based on independent device and careful consideration the Treasury had decided it was clear to us this was the best deal for the British taxpayer – we were getting more money back than any other deal on the table. [57] Osborne responded to concerns about the timing in The Daily Telegraph by saying that the 2008 Labour government had secretly made a deal with the European Commission in Brussels to sell the bank in or before 2013, and [g]iven we were advised that Northern Rock plc would have been likely to remain loss-making [until] at least well into 2012, which would have depleted taxpayer resources still further, agreeing a sale now was even more imperative. The deal valued the bank at somewhat less than its £1.12bn net asset value, and locks in a minimum loss for taxpayers of £373m to £453m.[59] It was reported in The Independent in December 2011 that Osborne had been involved in meetings[60] with bankers lobbying to avoid proposals in the Vickers Report[61] that were intended to reduce risks in the banking industry. The talks were alleged to be secret but were obtained via a Freedom of Information request. In February 2013 the UK lost its AAA credit rating for the first time since 1978.[62] Iain Duncan Smith has said he is in good company with Winston Churchill and Margaret Thatcher after it was alleged that Osborne said he was not clever enough. The work and pensions secretary said both former Conservative prime ministers had been told they were not bright enough in their lives, but were determined individuals. Duncan Smith was responding to claims that his clashes with George Osborne had reportedly resulted in the chancellor claiming he was not clever enough. The allegation appeared in Matthew dAnconas book, In It Together. Speaking on BBC Radio 4s World at One, Duncan Smith said: Well, the chancellor, George Osborne, a very good friend of mine, he was on the radio and television I think yesterday morning saying this is all completely untrue, he never said anything of the sort.[63] Personal life Osborne married The Hon Frances Victoria Howell (b. 18 February 1969), author and elder daughter of the Conservative politician and Government Minister Lord Howell of Guildford, on 4 April 1998.[8] The couple have two children, Luke Benedict, born at Westminster on 15 June 2001, and Liberty Kate, born at Westminster, London, on 27 June 2003.[5][13][64] He has an estimated personal fortune of around £4 million, as the beneficiary of a trust fund that owns a 15 per cent stake in Osborne & Little, the wallpaper-and-fabrics company co-founded by his father, Sir Peter Osborne, Bt.[65][66][67]
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