Lords Commissioners of the Treasury facts for kids

The Lords (or Lady) Commissioners of His Majesty's Treasury are a group of people in the United Kingdom who officially manage the country's money. They act as a special group for the very old job of the Treasurer of the Exchequer. This group includes the First Lord of the Treasury, the Second Lord of the Treasury, and usually four or more junior lords. These junior lords also work as "whips" in the House of Commons, helping to organize votes and keep their political party together.

Many people think the Lords Commissioners manage the office of the Lord High Treasurer, but that's not quite right. They actually manage the office of the Treasurer of the Exchequer of Great Britain and the Lord High Treasurer of Ireland. These jobs have been handled by a group (a "commission") since 1714, after Queen Anne passed away.

In the past, up until the 1800s, this group made most of the big money decisions for Great Britain. However, over time, these jobs became more like "honorary" positions, meaning they didn't involve much actual work. The First Lord almost always became the Prime Minister, the Second Lord became the Chancellor of the Exchequer (the main finance minister), and the junior lords became whips in Parliament.

Even though they have different numbers (First, Second, Junior), technically all Lords Commissioners are equal in rank. The numbers just show who is more senior, not who has more power over the others. But in reality, the top-numbered Lords have held the most power for a long time.

Who are the Current Lords Commissioners?

The people currently holding these positions were officially appointed on 15 December 2023.

How do they work with the Treasury?

Out of all the Lords Commissioners, usually only the Second Lord, who is also the Chancellor of the Exchequer, actually works inside HM Treasury (the government department that handles money). Since the job of Prime Minister was created, the person in that role usually also takes on the job of First Lord of the Treasury.

The other Lords of the Treasury don't really work for the Treasury in a day-to-day sense. Instead, they are government whips. They are given these official Treasury titles so they can be paid for their important work in helping the government run smoothly. The way the Treasury Commission is set up is flexible, which is helpful for the government's whip system because there's no fixed number of people who have to hold these jobs. The main whip, called the Chief Whip, isn't a Lord of the Treasury. Instead, they hold a similar but separate job called Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury, which is also an honorary role used to pay government members.

Officially, the Lords of the Treasury are in charge of HM Treasury. They hold this power because of their titles and by law, acting as the Treasurer of the Exchequer. However, in reality, the Chancellor does most of the work. They talk with the Prime Minister and give parliamentary tasks to other ministers in the Treasury. These other ministers are not Lords of the Treasury. They handle and create the rest of the Treasury's business. These junior minister jobs, from highest to lowest rank, are:

• Chief Secretary to the Treasury (this person is almost always part of the Cabinet, the main decision-making group)
• Financial Secretary to the Treasury (often also holds the job of Paymaster General)
• Commercial Secretary to the Treasury
• Economic Secretary to the Treasury
• Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury

The First Lord and the Prime Minister

For a long time, the Chancellor of the Exchequer was also the First Lord of the Treasury, and often the Prime Minister too. But as managing government money became more complicated, the Chancellor's job became more specialized. This made it less suitable for them to be the overall head of the government. The last time a Chancellor was also Prime Minister was Stanley Baldwin in 1923, and that was only for a very short time.

Another important change was that the House of Commons (where elected Members of Parliament sit) became more powerful than the House of Lords (where unelected peers sit). After the Glorious Revolution in 1688, it became an unwritten rule that the person in charge of money decisions (the Chancellor) should be in the House of Commons. This rule became permanent around 1718. Later, it also became a strong unwritten rule that the Prime Minister should be in the Commons. For example, when Alec Douglas-Home became Prime Minister in 1963, he had to give up his title as a Lord and get elected to the Commons to follow this rule.

The door of 10 Downing Street, with "First Lord of the Treasury" written on the letterbox. This shows it's the official home of the First Lord of the Treasury.

Throughout the 1700s and 1800s, Prime Ministers often came from the House of Lords. When the Prime Minister was a Lord, it made sense for them to be the "first among equals" in the Treasury group as First Lord, even if they couldn't be the Chancellor. This is why the job of First Lord became strongly connected to the Prime Minister's role. Almost all Prime Ministers up to Lord Salisbury had been First Lords. So, if the Prime Minister was a Lord, the Chancellor became the Second Lord. This arrangement became a firm rule starting in 1841. Since then, the Second Lordship has almost always been held by the Chancellor, unless the Prime Minister also holds the Chancellor's job (which is very rare).

Since the job of Prime Minister developed, the Prime Minister has also served as First Lord of the Treasury in almost all cases. This link makes sense because the First Lord of the Treasury was originally the most senior person dealing with the country's money. Since controlling money usually means having the most power, it's natural that this person would lead the whole government.

The two exceptions were Lord Chatham and Lord Salisbury. Lord Chatham was Prime Minister from 1766 to 1768 but held a different job, Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal, instead of First Lord. Lord Salisbury was not First Lord during his first (1885–1886) or third (1895–1902) terms as Prime Minister. However, he was First Lord for the first two years of his second term (1886–1892).

Since Lord Salisbury, the two roles have always gone together. In fact, the Prime Minister's official home, 10 Downing Street, is actually the official residence of the First Lord of the Treasury. That title is even written on the letterbox! Lord Salisbury, who was very wealthy, didn't need an official residence and lived in his own grand house.

Other jobs have also been linked to the Prime Minister's role. Since 1968, the Prime Minister has also been the Minister for the Civil Service. This job was created when the responsibility for paying and managing government workers moved from the Treasury to a new department. Even though the department was later closed, the title remained. While the First Lordship of the Treasury is mostly an honorary title now, the Minister for the Civil Service job sometimes requires the Prime Minister to make policy decisions and be responsible for them.

Historically, Prime Ministers also often served as Leader of the House of Commons or Leader of the House of Lords. But as the government's power grew, these roles became less important for the Prime Minister. During World War II, Winston Churchill made himself Minister of Defence. Prime Ministers held this title for 13 years after that, but it was dropped by Sir Anthony Eden in 1955. More recently, Boris Johnson created and held the position of Minister for the Union to show his commitment to keeping the United Kingdom together. This role was also held by his successor, Liz Truss.

Because of this history, the First Lord of the Treasury is the title most strongly connected to the Prime Minister's job. Seven Prime Ministers have held only the post of First Lord of the Treasury, without any other main job. These include David Lloyd George, Sir Anthony Eden, Harold Macmillan, and Harold Wilson.

See also

• List of lords commissioners of the Treasury since 1714
• List of lord high treasurers of England and Great Britain – includes a list of former lords commissioners of the Treasury until 1714
• Secretary to the Treasury