George Osborne

George Gideon Oliver Osborne (born 23 May 1971) is a former British politician and newspaper editor who served as Chancellor of the Exchequer from 2010 to 2016 and as First Secretary of State from 2015 to 2016 in the Cameron government.

In 1990 he was awarded a demyship at Magdalen College, Oxford, where in 1993 he received a 2:1 bachelor's degree in Modern History.

Whilst there, he was a member of the Bullingdon Club.

He also attended Davidson College in North Carolina for a semester, as a Dean Rusk Scholar.

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; he also applied to The Economist, where he was interviewed and rejected by Gideon Rachman.

In the end, he had to settle for freelance work on the 'Peterborough' diary column in The Daily Telegraph.

One of his Oxford friends, journalist George Bridges, alerted Osborne some time later to a research vacancy at Conservative Central Office.

After working briefly as a freelancer for The Daily Telegraph, he joined the Conservative Research Department in 1994 and became head of its political section.

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 Party Conference.

Between 1995 and 1997 he worked as a special adviser to Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food Douglas Hogg (during the BSE crisis), and in the Political Office at 10 Downing Street.

He went on to be a special adviser to Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food Douglas Hogg and work for John Major at 10 Downing Street, including on Major's unsuccessful 1997 general election campaign.

In Opposition, he worked as a speechwriter and political secretary to Major's successor as party leader, William Hague.

Osborne worked on Prime Minister John Major's campaign team in 1997, in the run-up to the Tories' heavy election defeat that year.

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 William Hague, Major's successor as Conservative Party leader, as a speechwriter and political secretary.

He succeeded Alistair Darling, inheriting a large deficit in government finances due to the effects of the late-2000s financial crisis.

As Chancellor, Osborne's tenure pursued austerity policies aimed at reducing the budget deficit and launched the Northern Powerhouse initiative.

A member of the Conservative Party, he was Member of Parliament (MP) for Tatton from 2001 to 2017.

Osborne was elected as MP for Tatton in 2001, becoming the youngest Conservative member of the House of Commons.

He was appointed Shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury by Conservative leader Michael Howard in 2004.

The following year he ran David Cameron's successful party leadership campaign, and was subsequently appointed Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer.

In an interview in July 2005, he said: "It was my small act of rebellion. I never liked it [the name 'Gideon']. When I finally told my mother she said, 'Nor do I'. So I decided to be George after my grandfather [ Sir George Francis Osborne, 16th Baronet], who was a war hero. Life was easier as a George; it was a straightforward name."

After the 2010 general election, Osborne was appointed Chancellor of the Exchequer in the Cameron–Clegg coalition.

After the Conservatives won an overall majority in the 2015 general election, Cameron reappointed him Chancellor in his second government and gave him the additional title of First Secretary of State.

He was widely viewed as a potential successor to David Cameron as Leader of the Conservative Party; one Conservative MP, Nadhim Zahawi, suggested that the closeness of his relationship with Cameron meant that the two effectively shared power during the duration of the Cameron governments.

Following the 2016 referendum vote to leave the European Union and Cameron's consequent resignation, he was dismissed by Cameron's successor, Theresa May.

He has been chair of the Northern Powerhouse Partnership (NPP) since 2016 and of the British Museum since 2021.

Osborne was born in Paddington, London, as Gideon Oliver Osborne.

He was editor of the Evening Standard from 2017 to 2020.

The son of the Osborne & Little co-founder and baronet Peter Osborne, Osborne was born in Paddington and educated at Norland Place School, Colet Court and St Paul's School before studying at Magdalen College, Oxford.

Osborne served on the backbenches for a year before leaving public office at the 2017 general election.

He was editor of the Evening Standard from 2017 to 2020.

His father is Sir Peter Osborne, 17th Baronet, co-founder of the firm of fabric and wallpaper designers Osborne & Little.

His mother is Felicity Alexandra Loxton-Peacock, the daughter of Hungarian-born Jewish artist Clarisse Loxton-Peacock (née Fehér).

He is the eldest of four boys.

He decided when he was 13 to be known by the additional first name of 'George'.

Osborne is to inherit his father's baronetcy; he would thus become Sir George Osborne, 18th Baronet.

Osborne was educated at private schools: Norland Place School, Colet Court and St Paul's School.