Secretary to the Treasury

In the United Kingdom, there are several secretaries to the Treasury, who are Treasury ministers nominally acting as secretaries to HM Treasury. The origins of the office are unclear, although it probably originated during Lord Burghley's tenure as Lord Treasurer in the 16th century. The number of secretaries was expanded to two by 1714 at the latest. The Treasury ministers together discharge all the former functions of the Lord Treasurer, which are nowadays nominally vested in the Lords Commissioners of the Treasury. Of the commissioners, only the Second Lord of the Treasury, who is also the chancellor of the Exchequer, is a Treasury minister (the others are the prime minister and the government whips).

The chancellor is the senior Treasury minister, followed by the chief secretary, who also attends Cabinet and has particular responsibilities for public expenditure. In order of seniority, the junior Treasury ministers are: the financial secretary, the economic secretary, the exchequer secretary, and the commercial secretary (currently not in use).

One of the present-day secretaries, the parliamentary secretary to the Treasury, formerly known as the Patronage Secretary, is not a Treasury minister but the government whip in the House of Commons. The office can be seen as a sinecure, allowing the chief whip to draw a government salary, attend Cabinet, and use a Downing Street residence.

Current secretaries to the Treasury +Current Treasury Ministers (as of 20 July 2026) Minister Portrait Office Portfolio Emma Reynolds Chief Secretary to the Treasury Responsible for public expenditure, including spending reviews. James Murray Financial Secretary to the Treasury Leads the government’s growth agenda and oversees core Treasury business. Lucy Rigby Economic Secretary to the Treasury (City Minister) Responsible for financial services regulation, savings policy and regulation. Dan Tomlinson Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury Responsible for tax policy and administration, customs/VAT, and oversight of HMRC. Torsten Bell Parliamentary Secretary for the TreasurySupporting the Treasury's role across government and Treasury ministers in their duties.David Pitt-Watson, Baron Pitt-WatsonParliamentary Secretary for the TreasurySupporting the Treasury's role across government and Treasury ministers in their duties, and representing HM Treasury in the House of Lords Anneliese Midgley Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury Government Chief Whip, though formally a junior minister in the Treasury.

Civil Servants From October 2022, the Permanent Secretary to the Treasury - the head of the departmental civil service - is James Bowler. There are two Second Permanent Secretaries: Catherine Little and Jim O'Neill.

Secretaries to the Treasury 1660–1830 June 1660: Sir Philip Warwick May 1667: Sir George Downing, Bt October 1671: Sir Robert Howard July 1673: Charles Bertie March 1679: Henry Guy April 1689: William Jephson June 1691: Henry Guy March 1695: William Lowndes YearSenior SecretaryJunior Secretary11 June 1711William Lowndes Thomas HarleyNovember 1714John Taylor12 October 1715Horatio WalpoleApril 1717Charles StanhopeApril 1721Horatio WalpoleJanuary 1724John Scrope24 June 1730Edward Walpole1 June 1739Stephen Fox30 April 1741Henry Legge15 July 1742Henry Furnese30 November 1742John Jeffreys1 May 1746James West9 April 1752James West Nicholas Hardinge18 November 1756Nicholas Hardinge Samuel Martin5 July 1757James West9 April 1758James West 31 May 1758Samuel Martin29 May 1762Samuel Martin Jeremiah Dyson18 April 1763Jeremiah Dyson Charles Jenkinson24 August 1763Charles Jenkinson Thomas Whateley30 September 1765William Mellish Charles Lowndes18 August 1766Sir Grey Cooper, Bt Thomas Bradshaw16 October 1770John Robinson29 March 1782Henry Strachey Edward ChamberlainDied before being called to the Board6 April 1782Richard Burke15 July 1782Thomas Orde George Rose5 April 1783 Richard Burke Richard Brinsley Sheridan27 December 1783George Rose Thomas Steele26 February 1791 Charles Long24 March 1801 John Hiley Addington9 April 1801Nicholas Vansittart8 July 1802Nicholas Vansittart John Sargent21 May 1804William Huskisson William Sturges Bourne10 February 1806Nicholas Vansittart John King2 September 1806William Henry Fremantle1 April 1807Hon. Henry Wellesley William Huskisson5 April 1809Charles Arbuthnot8 December 1809Richard Wharton7 January 1814Stephen Rumbold Lushington7 February 1823Stephen Rumbold Lushington John Charles Herries19 April 1827Joseph Planta Thomas Frankland Lewis28 January 1828George Robert Dawson

1830–present Chief Secretary to the Treasury (established 1961) Financial Secretary to the Treasury (established 1830) Economic Secretary to the Treasury (established 1947) Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury (established 1996) Financial Services Secretary to the Treasury (established 2008, not in use since 2010) Commercial Secretary to the Treasury (established 2010, not in use since 2017)

Secretary to the Treasury

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