The shadow chancellor of the exchequer in the British Parliamentary system is the member of the Shadow Cabinet who is responsible for shadowing the chancellor of the exchequer. The title is given at the gift of the leader of the Opposition and has no formal constitutional role, but is generally considered the second-most senior position, unless a shadow deputy prime minister is chosen, on the opposition frontbench, after the leader. Past shadow chancellors include Harold Wilson, James Callaghan, Edward Heath, Geoffrey Howe, Kenneth Clarke, Gordon Brown, John McDonnell and Rachel Reeves.
The name for the position has a mixed history. It is used to designate the lead economic spokesman for the Opposition. The name 'Shadow Chancellor' has also been used for the corresponding position for the Liberal Democrats, the Liberal Democrat Treasury spokesperson. This was a source of humour for Chancellor Gordon Brown, who in 2005 played the two off against one another in Parliament, saying, "I, too, have a great deal of time for the shadow chancellor who resides in Twickenham [Liberal Democrat Vince Cable], rather than the shadow chancellor for the Conservative Party."
List of shadow chancellors NamePortraitEntered officeLeft officePartyShadow Cabinet Oliver Stanley Unknown 10 December 1950 ConservativeChurchill Rab Butler 10 December 1950 26 October 1951 Hugh Gaitskell 26 October 1951 15 February 1956 Labour Attlee Gaitskell Harold Wilson 15 February 1956 30 November 1961 James Callaghan 30 November 1961 16 October 1964 Wilson I Reginald Maudling 16 October 1964 16 February 1965Baston 2004, 246 Conservative Douglas-Home Edward Heath 16 February 1965Baston 2004, 246 28 July 1965 Iain Macleod 28 July 1965 20 June 1970 Heath I Roy Jenkins 20 June 1970 19 April 1972 Labour Wilson II Denis Healey 19 April 1972 4 March 1974 Anthony Barber 4 March 1974 11 March 1974 Conservative Heath II Robert Carr 11 March 1974 11 February 1975 Sir Geoffrey Howe 11 February 1975 4 May 1979 Thatcher Denis Healey 4 May 1979 8 December 1980 Labour Callaghan Peter Shore 8 December 1980 31 October 1983 Foot Roy Hattersley 31 October 1983 13 July 1987 Kinnock John Smith 13 July 1987 24 July 1992Gordon Brown24 July 19922 May 1997 Smith Beckett Blair Ken Clarke 2 May 1997 11 June 1997 Conservative Major Peter Lilley 11 June 1997 2 June 1998 Hague Francis Maude 2 June 1998 1 February 2000 Michael Portillo 1 February 2000 18 September 2001 Michael Howard 18 September 2001 6 November 2003 Duncan Smith Oliver Letwin 6 November 2003 10 May 2005 Howard George Osborne 10 May 2005 11 May 2010 Cameron Alistair Darling 11 May 2010 8 October 2010 Labour Harman I Alan Johnson 8 October 2010 20 January 2011 Miliband Ed Balls 20 January 2011 11 May 2015 Chris Leslie 11 May 2015 12 September 2015 Harman II John McDonnell 13 September 2015 5 April 2020 Corbyn Anneliese Dodds 5 April 2020 9 May 2021 Starmer Rachel Reeves 9 May 2021 5 July 2024Jeremy Hunt8 July 20244 November 2024 Conservative SunakSir Mel Stride4 November 202431 August 2026 BadenochAndrew Griffith31 August 2026incumbent
References
Further reading Lewis Baston (2004) Reggie: The Life of Reginald Maudling. Sutton Publishing.