Chancellor of the Exchequer facts for kids

The Chancellor of the Exchequer, often called just the Chancellor, is a very important government minister in the United Kingdom. This person is in charge of His Majesty's Treasury, which is like the country's finance department. The Chancellor handles all the money matters for the UK, including how much tax people pay and where the government spends its money. It's a bit like being the chief financial officer for the whole country!

The Chancellor is one of the four most important jobs in the British government, right after the Prime Minister. This role is similar to a finance minister in other countries around the world. The Chancellor is also known as the "Second Lord of the Treasury." This means they help manage the country's finances alongside the Prime Minister, who is the "First Lord of the Treasury."

This job is one of the oldest in British history, dating back to the 1200s. In the past, the Chancellor looked after the "Exchequer," which was the medieval office that collected and checked the King's money. Today, the Chancellor controls the government's money plans, like taxes and how money is spent across different government departments. Before 1997, the Chancellor also decided interest rates, but now the Bank of England makes those decisions independently.

Since 1718, almost all Chancellors have been members of the House of Commons, which is part of the UK Parliament. The current Chancellor is Rachel Reeves, who took office on 5 July 2024. She is the first woman to hold this important position in its long history!

The Chancellor's Home and Role

Living at 11 Downing Street

As the Second Lord of the Treasury, the Chancellor lives at 11 Downing Street in London. This house is right next door to the Prime Minister's home at 10 Downing Street. While these used to be private homes, they are now mostly offices. The Chancellor lives in an apartment made from what used to be the servants' rooms.

Since 1827, the Chancellor has always held the title of Second Lord of the Treasury, unless they were also the Prime Minister.

What the Chancellor Does

A long time ago, a Chancellor named Robert Lowe said his job was to "distribute misery as fairly as he can." He meant that deciding on taxes and spending can be tough, but it's about making fair choices for everyone.

Managing Government Money

The Chancellor has a lot of power over other government departments. This is because the Treasury sets limits on how much money each department can spend. How much power a Chancellor has depends on their personality, their standing in their political party, and their relationship with the Prime Minister. For example, Gordon Brown was Chancellor for ten years (1997-2007), which made him a very strong figure in the government.

One of the Chancellor's main jobs is to create the yearly government budget. This budget, called the Autumn Budget, predicts how much the government will spend in the next year and announces new financial plans. There's also a "mini-Budget" called the Spring Statement. The budget details are kept secret until the Chancellor announces them in a speech to Parliament. It's so secret that one Chancellor, Hugh Dalton, had to resign in 1947 because he accidentally told a newspaper reporter some key details before his speech!

Influencing Interest Rates

Even though the Bank of England sets interest rates, the Chancellor still plays a big part in how money is managed. The Chancellor sets the target for inflation, which the Bank of England tries to meet with its interest rates. The Chancellor also helps choose some of the members of the Bank's committee that decides on interest rates.

Who Helps the Chancellor?

The Chancellor works with a team of other ministers and civil servants at the Treasury. The most important helper is the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, who is also a member of the Cabinet. This person helps negotiate spending details with other government departments.

The Chancellor must also be a member of the Privy Council, which means they are called "The Right Honourable." Because the House of Lords (the other part of Parliament) doesn't deal with money matters, the Chancellor is almost always a member of the House of Commons.

Special Things About the Office

The Budget Box

Budget box or Gladstone box, about 1860.

The Chancellor traditionally carries their budget speech to the House of Commons in a special red box. This "Budget Box" looks like other boxes used by government ministers for official papers. However, it's famous because the Chancellor shows it to the press before heading to Parliament on Budget Day.

The first famous Budget Box was used by William Ewart Gladstone in 1853 and was used until 1965. A new box was made in 1997 by industrial trainees. In 2008, Alistair Darling started using the original box again, and George Osborne continued this tradition. However, the old box is now too fragile to use, and its key has been lost!

The Robe of Office

The Chancellor also has a special robe, similar to the one worn by the Lord Chancellor. It's usually worn at important events like coronations. Some Chancellors used to wear it when attending a ceremony called the "Trial of the Pyx," which checks the quality of new coins.

Recent Chancellors of the Exchequer

Here are some of the Chancellors who have served the United Kingdom in recent times:

Chancellor of the Exchequer			Term of office		Party	Ministry	Monarch (Reign)
	Kenneth Clarke	Kenneth Clarke MP for Rushcliffe	27 May 1993	2 May 1997	Conservative	Major II	Elizabeth II (1952–2022)
	Gordon Brown	Gordon Brown MP for Dunfermline East → Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath	2 May 1997	27 June 2007	Labour	Blair (I, II & III)
	Alistair Darling	Alistair Darling MP for Edinburgh South West	28 June 2007	11 May 2010	Labour	Brown
	George Osborne	George Osborne MP for Tatton	11 May 2010	13 July 2016	Conservative	Cameron–Clegg (Con.–L.D.)
						Cameron II
	Philip Hammond	Philip Hammond MP for Runnymede and Weybridge	13 July 2016	24 July 2019	Conservative	May I
						May II
	Sajid Javid	Sajid Javid MP for Bromsgrove	24 July 2019	13 February 2020	Conservative	Johnson I
​						Johnson II
	Rishi Sunak	Rishi Sunak MP for Richmond (Yorks)	13 February 2020	5 July 2022	Conservative
	Nadhim Zahawi	Nadhim Zahawi MP for Stratford-on-Avon	5 July 2022	6 September 2022	Conservative
‍	Kwasi Kwarteng	Kwasi Kwarteng MP for Spelthorne	6 September 2022	14 October 2022	Conservative	Truss
							Charles III (2022–present)
	Jeremy Hunt	Jeremy Hunt MP for South West Surrey	14 October 2022	5 July 2024	Conservative
​						Sunak
	Rachel Reeves	Rachel Reeves MP for Leeds West	5 July 2024	Incumbent	Labour	Starmer

Timeline of Chancellors (1817-Present)

This timeline shows who has been Chancellor of the Exchequer since 1817, and which political party they belonged to.

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See also

• Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer
• List of lord high treasurers of England and Great Britain In Spanish: Canciller de la Hacienda del Reino Unido para niños