HM Treasury

{{Short description|Ministerial department of the UK Government}} {{Use dmy dates|date=December 2020}} {{Use British English|date=March 2026}} {{Leadcite comment}} {{Infobox organization | name = His Majesty's Treasury | native_name = | abbreviation = HMT | logo = HM Treasury logo.svg{{!}}class=skin-invert-image | logo_size = 250px | image = New Government Offices, Horse Guards Road, London-geograph-5347512.jpg | caption = 1 Horse Guards Road in Westminster, London | headquarters = 1 Horse Guards Road | leader_title = First Lord of the Treasury | leader_name = Keir Starmer | leader_title2 = Chancellor of the Exchequer | leader_name2 = Rachel Reeves | website = {{URL|https://gov.uk/hm-treasury}} }} '''His Majesty's Treasury''' (often shortened to '''HM Treasury''', the '''Treasury''' or '''HMT''') is the Government of the United Kingdom’s economic and finance ministry, managing the United Kingdom's public spending and setting its economic policy. It is one of the smallest UK government departments by staff count, but is widely considered the most powerful.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Barber |first=Lionel |title=The Treasury today: a devalued currency? |url=https://www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/ideas/economics/40804/the-treasury-today-a-devalued-currency |access-date=2025-04-15 |website=dlv.prospect.gcpp.io |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |title=Why Britain's Treasury must change its ways |url=https://www.economist.com/britain/2023/11/16/why-britains-treasury-must-change-its-ways |access-date=2025-04-15 |newspaper=The Economist |issn=0013-0613}}</ref>

==History== Anglo-Saxon governments were skilled in collecting, auditing, and managing their cash revenues. However, there is no evidence of a distinct administrative department. Royal treasures were kept at Winchester, but the crown's wealth was likely kept more flexibly.<ref name=":1">{{Cite book |last=Roseveare |first=Henry |title=The treasury: the evolution of a British institution |date=1969 |publisher=Lane |isbn=978-0-7139-0111-5 |location=London |pages=21}}</ref> For example, Edward the Confessor kept some treasure at his palace in Westminster.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Thornbury |first=Walter |url=https://archive.org/details/oldnewlondonnarr03thor/page/490/mode/2up?q=thief |title=Old and new London : a narrative of its history, its people, and its places |date=1873 |publisher=London : Cassell, Petter, & Galpin |others=University of California Libraries |pages=491}}</ref>[[File:Tally-Sticks.jpg|alt=Wooden tally sticks|thumb|296x296px|Wooden tally sticks used by the Normans as receipts for money.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Roseveare |first=Henry |url=https://archive.org/details/treasuryevolutio0000rose_r5y5 |title=The Treasury ; the evolution of a British institution |date=1969 |publisher=[New York] : Columbia University Press |others=Internet Archive |isbn=978-0-231-03405-0 |pages=134}}</ref>|left]] The first signs of an administrative department arrive with the Normans. Following the 1066 Norman Conquest, the Exchequer was an event held twice a year, at Easter and Michaelmas. The purpose of these meetings was to make judgements about the collection and usage of the royal treasury. These events were separate from the royal treasury, which stored the royal wealth.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Warren |first=W. L. (Wilfred Lewis) |url=https://archive.org/details/governanceofnorm0000warr_y8g2/mode/2up?view=theater |title=The governance of Norman and Angevin England, 1086-1272 |date=1987 |publisher=Stanford, Calif. : Stanford University Press |others=Internet Archive |isbn=978-0-8047-1307-8 |pages=73}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Galbraith |first=V. H. (Vivian Hunter) |url=http://archive.org/details/makingofdomesday0000galb |title=The making of Domesday book |date=1961 |publisher=Oxford, Clarendon Press |others=Internet Archive |pages=91}}</ref> The earliest known official of the treasury was Henry the Treasurer. It is likely that Henry the Treasurer partook in the Exchequer events.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Douglas |first=David Charles |url=https://archive.org/details/williamconqueror00dougrich |title=William the Conqueror; the Norman impact upon England |date=1964 |publisher=Berkeley, University of California Press |others=Internet Archive |isbn=978-0-520-00348-4}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Hollister |first=C. Warren |year=1978 |title=The Origins of the English Treasury |journal=The English Historical Review |volume=93 |issue=367 |pages=262–275 |doi=10.1093/ehr/XCIII.CCCLXVII.262 |jstor=567061}}; [http://domesdaymap.co.uk/name/275800/henry-the-treasurer/ Open Domesday] Retrieved 2012-06-25; HM Treasury:History</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Richardson |first=H. G. (Henry Gerald) |url=https://archive.org/details/governanceofmedi0000unse/mode/2up |title=The governance of mediaeval England from the conquest to Magna carta |date=1963 |publisher=Edinburgh : Edinburgh University Press |others=Internet Archive |isbn=978-0-85224-102-8 |pages=220}}</ref> The name Exchequer came from the chequered cloth that was spread over the counting‐table at these events.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Madox |first=Thomas |url=https://archive.org/details/historyantiquiti01mado/page/162/mode/2up |title=The history and antiquities of the Exchequer of the kings of England, in two periods: to wit, from the Norman conquest, to the end of the reign of K. John; and from the end of the reign of K. John, to the end of the reign of K. Edward II |last2=Fitzneale |first2=Richard |last3=Gervasius |first3=of Tilbury |date=1769 |publisher=London : Printed for W. Owen [etc.] |others=University of California Libraries |pages=162}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Pipe Roll Society (Great Britain) |url=https://archive.org/details/publicationsofpi25pipe_0 |title=The Publications of the Pipe Roll Society |date=1904 |publisher=[S.l. : s.n.] |others=Allen County Public Library Genealogy Center |pages=12}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.7722/j.ctt1x73z8?turn_away=true |title=The English and their Legacy, 900-1200: Essays in Honour of Ann Williams |date=2012 |publisher=Boydell & Brewer |isbn=978-1-84383-794-7 |pages=245 |doi=10.7722/j.ctt1x73z8.22}}</ref> By 1154, the Exchequer was a fully-fledged administrative institution based in Westminster.<ref>{{Cite book |title=Restoration and reform, 1153-1165: recovery from civil war in England |date=2000 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-511-49565-6 |editor-last=White |editor-first=Graeme J. |series=Cambridge studies in medieval life and thought |location=Cambridge, UK New York, USA |pages=198}}</ref> The royal treasury became part of the Lower Exchequer, whilst the twice-yearly meetings formed the Upper Exchequer.<ref name=":1" />

By the 1400s, the significance of the Exchequer was undermined. Much of its administrative and treasury functions were handled personally by Edward IV.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Clark |first=George |url=https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.45408/page/n633/mode/2up?view=theater |title=The Fifteenth Century 1399 -1485 |pages=604}}</ref> This trend continued. Henry VII would personally check, sign, and draft the accounts of the Crown.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Roseveare |first=Henry |title=The treasury: the evolution of a British institution |date=1969 |publisher=Lane |isbn=978-0-7139-0111-5 |location=London |pages=36}}</ref> By the early 1500s, this situation was reversed by Thomas Cromwell. Authority was restored to the Exchequer, and four new government departments were created to handle the state finances. In 1554, these new departments were merged with the Exchequer.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Roseveare |first=Henry |title=The treasury: the evolution of a British institution |date=1969 |publisher=Lane |isbn=978-0-7139-0111-5 |location=London |pages=37}}</ref> However by the late 1500s, under James I of England, debts mounted and the treasury reserves began to dwindle.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Roseveare |first=Henry |title=The Treasury: the evolution of a British institution |date=1969 |publisher=Allen Lane |isbn=978-0-7139-0111-5 |location=London |pages=45}}</ref> In an attempt to control the spiralling debt, Treasurer Lionel Cranfield briefly imposed strict control over spending on the Crown. This would be the first attempt by a Treasurer to impose control over the sovereign. He was later impeached under the guise of corruption.<ref name=":2">{{Cite book |last=Roseveare |first=Henry |title=The Treasury: the evolution of a British institution |date=1969 |publisher=Allen Lane |isbn=978-0-7139-0111-5 |location=London |pages=55}}</ref>

{{Quote box | text = All Treasurers, if they do good service to their masters, must be generally hated. | author = James I of England | title = | source = | align = right | qalign = center |class=pullquote}} thumb|330x330px|Whitehall Palace seen from the Thames in the mid-1600s. In the 1640s, the English Civil War broke out. The Exchequer collapsed and finance fell to ad hoc Parliamentary and Royal committees. In 1654, Oliver Cromwell re-opened the Exchequer but left its medieval structure intact.<ref name=":2" /> At the 1660 Stuart Restoration, a Lord Treasurer resumed charge, but Parliament won a permanent role in the treasury. Thus, the Treasury was caught between its sovereign-court origins and Parliament's growing authority.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Roseveare |first=Henry |title=The treasury: the evolution of a British institution |date=1969 |publisher=Lane |isbn=978-0-7139-0111-5 |location=London |pages=54}}</ref> Parliament had promised King Charles II £1.2m per year. However, Charles was unable to extract such funds due to the poor financial state of the country.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Ferguson |first=Niall |title=The ascent of money: a financial history of the world |date=2009 |publisher=Penguin Books |isbn=978-0-7181-9400-0 |edition=Publ. with updates |series=A Penguin book History |location=London |pages=76}}</ref> In 1667, without consulting Parliament, Charles decided to replace the Lord Treasurer with a small board of officials. He wanted the "rougher hands of younger, more energetic men to wrest control of the country's finances."<ref>{{Cite book |last=Roseveare |first=Henry |title=The Treasury: the evolution of a British institution |date=1969 |publisher=Allen Lane |isbn=978-0-7139-0111-5 |location=London |pages=58}}</ref> The Treasury would now be run not by a single person, but by a board. One notable member was Sir George Downing, who brought lessons from Dutch finance to England.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Roseveare |first=Henry |title=The Treasury: the evolution of a British institution |date=1969 |publisher=Allen Lane |isbn=978-0-7139-0111-5 |location=London |pages=59}}</ref><ref name="Sir George Downing">{{cite web |title=Sir George Downing |url=http://www.britannica.com/biography/George-Downing |access-date=29 August 2015 |website=Encyclopædia Britannica (online) |publisher=Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.}}</ref> Although England still lagged behind the Dutch in trade, its economy was growing rapidly. The board ended the practice of tax farming (selling the right to tax citizens to third parties) in favour of collecting the taxes directly. This led to an increase in tax revenue and an expansion of the Treasury's staff.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Roseveare |first=Henry |title=The treasury: the evolution of a British institution |date=1969 |publisher=Lane |isbn=978-0-7139-0111-5 |location=London |pages=65}}</ref>

However, due to heavy naval spending in the Anglo–Dutch wars, government debt ballooned. King Charles II halted all debt repayments, in what would become known as the Stop of the Exchequer. This substantially undermined trust in the government's finances. In response, Parliament began tightly controlling how government money was spent.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Roseveare |first=Henry |title=The treasury: the evolution of a British institution |date=1969 |publisher=Lane |isbn=978-0-7139-0111-5 |location=London |pages=69}}</ref> That control vanished in 1685, when Parliament gave James II nearly £2 million a year with no restrictions. After the Glorious Revolution of 1688, the new king, William III, was deliberately kept short of permanent income so that he remained dependent on Parliament. The revolution also led to the development of new financial tools like the Bank of England, the Land Tax, and government bonds.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Roseveare |first=Henry |title=The treasury: the evolution of a British institution |date=1969 |publisher=Lane |isbn=978-0-7139-0111-5 |location=London |pages=68}}</ref> The new government made reforms to the Treasury too. Henry Guy was a Member of Parliament as well as a Treasury Secretary. However, he was later disgraced for having taken a bribe. New rules were created to prevent all office-holders from sitting in the Commons. This effectively created a divorce between civil servants and the Commons.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Roseveare |first=Henry |title=The treasury: the evolution of a British institution |date=1969 |publisher=Lane |isbn=978-0-7139-0111-5 |location=London |pages=73}}</ref> By Queen Anne's death in 1714, the Treasury operated independently from the monarch, and could shape its own direction.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Roseveare |first=Henry |title=The treasury: the evolution of a British institution |date=1969 |publisher=Lane |isbn=978-0-7139-0111-5 |location=London |pages=81}}</ref> thumb|245x245px|Kent's Treasury is the squared stone building in the middle. At the beginning of the 1700s, the Treasury held power in some areas but lacked it in others. It held significant power in tax collection. 17,000 civil servants gathered taxes for the government. Parliament would allow the Treasury to handle day-to-day management of tax collection. However, the Treasury rarely questioned government spending decisions.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Roseveare |first=Henry |title=The treasury: the evolution of a British institution |date=1969 |publisher=Lane |isbn=978-0-7139-0111-5 |location=London |pages=84}}</ref> In 1736, a new Treasury building was commissioned. The new building would be physically connected to No. 10 via passageways. The Treasury was now firmly under the control of Parliament.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Roseveare |first=Henry |title=The treasury: the evolution of a British institution |date=1969 |publisher=Lane |isbn=978-0-7139-0111-5 |location=London |pages=101}}</ref> thumb|A satirical image depicting the 'Opening of the Budget' The term budget emerged during this period. It originally meant a small pouch in French (bougette). In a pamphlet in 1733, Sir Robert Walpole is depicted satirically as a quack doctor opening his bag (or bougette) of tricks. The joke stuck, and the term shifted from meaning the container to meaning the financial plan itself.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Roseveare |first=Henry |title=The treasury: the evolution of a British institution |date=1969 |publisher=Lane |isbn=978-0-7139-0111-5 |location=London |pages=114}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/56609738 |title=The budget opened. Or, an answer to a pamphlet [by Sir Robert Walpole] intitled, A letter from a member of Parliament to his friends in the country, concerning the duties of wine and tobacco |vauthors=((Bath, William Pulteney)) |date=1733 |publisher=Printed by H. Haines}}</ref>

The power of the Treasury would increase in the late 1700s. The Civil List was the main way Parliament funded the monarch's household budget. By the late 1770s, King George III had accumulated considerable debt. By 1782, Parliament increased the Civil List to £900,000. For the first time, it also demanded detailed scrutiny of Civil List accounts. This was a significant change. The Sovereign's own expenditure would now be scrutinised by the Treasury.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Roseveare |first=Henry |title=The treasury: the evolution of a British institution |date=1969 |publisher=Lane |isbn=978-0-7139-0111-5 |location=London |pages=88}}</ref>

In 1776, the American Declaration of Independence was signed. Some blame the Treasury for the rebellion.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Clark |first=Dora Mae |title=The rise of the British Treasury: colonial administration in the eighteenth century |date=1969 |publisher=Archon Books |isbn=978-0-208-00788-9 |location=Hamden, Conn. |pages=1}}</ref> At the time, the Treasury had more officers in America than any other department.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Clark |first=Dora Mae |title=The rise of the British treasury: colonial administration in the eighteenth century |date=1969 |publisher=Archon Books |isbn=978-0-208-00788-9 |edition=Reprinted |location=Hamden Conn |pages=5}}</ref> Additionally, after the Seven Years' War in Europe, government debt had soared. This pushed the Treasury to tighten customs, change pay incentives, and lower duties to curb smuggling. In 1767, Chancellor Charles Townshend, introduced the tax legislation which would ultimately ignite the rebellion. However, others emphasise that the Treasury acted alongside the Board of Trade, the Privy Council, Parliament and other government bodies.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Roseveare |first=Henry |title=The treasury: the evolution of a British institution |date=1969 |publisher=Lane |isbn=978-0-7139-0111-5 |location=London |pages=98}}</ref>

In the 1800s, the Treasury became the government's hard brake. The Treasury relied on the 'power of the purse' to enforce Gladstone's economic restraint. This led to constant clashes with the other departments.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Roseveare |first=Henry |title=The treasury: the evolution of a British institution |date=1969 |publisher=Lane |isbn=978-0-7139-0111-5 |location=London |pages=186}}</ref> The Treasury's control would deepen when the Exchequers of the Great Britain and Ireland were consolidated in 1817.<ref name="CA1816">{{Cite act|title=Consolidated Fund Act 1816|title-link=Consolidated Fund Act 1816|year=1816|orig-date=Regnal 56 Geo. 3|orig-section=c. 98|pinpoint=[http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/Geo3/56/98/section/2 § 2] }}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |url=https://archive.org/details/bookofdignitiesc00haydrich |title=The Book of Dignities |publisher=W. H. Allen & Co. |year=1890 |editor-last=Haydn |editor-first=Joseph |location=London |page=[https://archive.org/details/bookofdignitiesc00haydrich/page/562 562] |chapter=X (Ireland) |ol=13505280M |editor-last2=Ockerby |editor-first2=Horace |ol-access=free}}</ref> Parliament had complete control of government finances, and the Treasury emerged as the centre of financial discipline.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Roseveare |first=Henry |title=The treasury: the evolution of a British institution |date=1969 |publisher=Lane |isbn=978-0-7139-0111-5 |location=London |pages=141}}</ref>

In the 1850s, a shift in the staffing of the Treasury occurred.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Reid |first=Gordon |title=The Politics of Financial Control: The Role of the House of Commons |date=2023 |publisher=Taylor & Francis Group |isbn=978-1-000-82544-2 |series=Routledge Revivals Ser |location=Milton |pages=41}}</ref> The Northcote–Trevelyan Report (1854) set the stage for this change. Recruitment for the Treasury was reorganised around merit and fixed pay. The Treasury shifted from hiring through royal connections to a small, selective elite. Stricter exams raised entry standards. However, public school connections still mattered. By 1914, public school and Oxbridge men dominated the ranks of the Treasury.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Roseveare |first=Henry |title=The treasury: the evolution of a British institution |date=1969 |publisher=Lane |isbn=978-0-7139-0111-5 |location=London |pages=169}}</ref> left|thumb|212x212px|A Bradbury note issued by the Treasury. During the First World War, the Treasury attempted to stabilise finances. It closed the Stock Exchange, paused many payments, and issued new paper money like the Bradbury note.<ref name="treasurynotes1">{{cite web |author=Trevor R Howard |title=Treasury notes |url=http://homepage.ntlworld.com/trev.rh/Notes/treasury.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071205183225/http://homepage.ntlworld.com/trev.rh/Notes/treasury.htm |archive-date=5 December 2007 |access-date=12 October 2007}}</ref> Ideologically, the Treasury shifted from Gladstonian prudence to Keynesian management of jobs and prices.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Roseveare |first=Henry |title=The treasury: the evolution of a British institution |date=1969 |publisher=Lane |isbn=978-0-7139-0111-5 |location=London |pages=236}}</ref> thumb|283x283px|Troops from the Grenadier Guards constructing sandbag defences around the Treasury. In the Second World War, Blitz bombing damaged the Treasury building. This led the Treasury to move to 1 Horse Guards Road, where it remains to this day.<ref name="history">[http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/about_goggs.htm HM Treasury: About GOGGS]</ref> For the first time, the 1941 Budget used national accounts. National accounts track the entire economy's income and output. The Treasury now had a complete picture of the economy. In 1947, Sir Stafford Cripps moved economic planning into the Treasury. The Treasury now managed the budget, national accounts, and the pound.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Roseveare |first=Henry |title=The treasury: the evolution of a British institution |date=1969 |publisher=Lane |isbn=978-0-7139-0111-5 |location=London |pages=316}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Rasmussen |first=Jorgen |date=September 1964 |title=Cabinet Reform in Britain: 1914–1963. By Hans Daalder. (Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1963, Pp. 381. $8.00.) |url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S0003055400289703/type/journal_article |journal=American Political Science Review |language=en |volume=58 |issue=3 |pages=728–729 |doi=10.1017/S0003055400289703 |issn=0003-0554|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

Between 1947 and 1968, the Treasury would see a shrinking of power. Parliamentary reviews from 1957 to 1958 resulted in the Plowden Report.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Roseveare |first=Henry |title=The treasury: the evolution of a British institution |date=1969 |publisher=Lane |isbn=978-0-7139-0111-5 |location=London |pages=297}}</ref> This report encouraged more delegation to departments. Another report in 1968 criticised the Treasury's role as being too broad. The Treasury would hand over some functions to a newly created Civil Service Department.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Roseveare |first=Henry |title=The treasury: the evolution of a British institution |date=1969 |publisher=Lane |isbn=978-0-7139-0111-5 |location=London |pages=353}}</ref>

In 2022, the Permanent Secretary, Sir Tom Scholar, was sacked by Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng and Prime Minister Liz Truss. Contemporary reporting described it as unprecedented in Treasury history.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-12-13 |title=Treasury perm sec James Bowler: Tom Scholar's departure 'was not normal' |url=https://www.civilserviceworld.com/professions/article/tom-scholar-sacking-treasury-perm-sec-not-normal-james-bowler |access-date=2023-04-24 |website=Civil Service World |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |title=Ousting of UK Treasury Official is Early Sign of Truss’s Intent |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-09-10/ousting-of-uk-treasury-official-is-early-sign-of-truss-s-intent |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230513175911/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-09-10/ousting-of-uk-treasury-official-is-early-sign-of-truss-s-intent |archive-date=2023-05-13 |access-date=2025-08-15 |work=Bloomberg.com |language=en}}</ref>

=== Discord server === Also in October 2022, the HM Treasury decided to start up a read-only Discord server to appeal with a younger audience<ref>{{Cite news |title=Treasury trolled after opening account on instant messaging social platform Discord |url=https://news.sky.com/story/treasury-trolled-after-opening-account-on-instant-messaging-social-platform-discord-12748356 |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20241119171822/https://news.sky.com/story/treasury-trolled-after-opening-account-on-instant-messaging-social-platform-discord-12748356 |archive-date=2024-11-19 |access-date=2026-05-21 |work=Sky News |language=en-GB}}</ref>, with only the server owner being able to send messages and announcements. Despite only the admin being able to send messages, users could still send emoji reactions to messages and there was a channel showing everyone who joined the server, and it was not long until it caught attention online and was filled with trolls using offensive emojis to react (such as the middle finger) and changing their usernames to say messages.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Hern |first=Alex |last2=editor |first2=Alex Hern UK technology |date=2022-11-15 |title=UK Treasury joins chat app Discord and is met with torrent of abuse |url=https://www.theguardian.com/media/2022/nov/15/uk-treasury-joins-chat-app-discord-torrent-abuse |access-date=2026-05-21 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}</ref>

== Leadership == {{PoliticsUK}} {| class="wikitable" |+Current Treasury Ministers (As of 1 September 2025)<ref>{{Cite web |date=15 March 2023 |title=HM Treasury |url=https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/hm-treasury |access-date=14 January 2025 |website=GOV.UK |language=en}}</ref> |- ! width="95x" | Minister ! Portrait ! Office ! Portfolio |- | Sir Keir Starmer | alt=|x80px | First Lord of the Treasury | Formal head of the Treasury, concurrently serves as the Prime Minister.<ref>{{Cite web |title=First Lord of the Treasury - GOV.UK |url=https://www.gov.uk/government/ministers/first-lord-of-the-treasury |access-date=2025-08-15 |website=www.gov.uk |language=en}}</ref> |- | Rachel Reeves | alt=|x80px | Chancellor of the Exchequer | Overall responsibility for the Treasury.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Chancellor of the Exchequer - GOV.UK |url=https://www.gov.uk/government/ministers/chancellor-of-the-exchequer |access-date=2025-08-15 |website=www.gov.uk |language=en}}</ref> |- | Lucy Rigby | alt=|78x78px | Chief Secretary to the Treasury | Responsible for public expenditure, including spending reviews.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Chief Secretary to the Treasury – GOV.UK |url=https://www.gov.uk/government/ministers/chief-secretary-to-the-treasury |access-date=2024-05-07 |website=www.gov.uk |language=en}}</ref>

|- | Lord Livermore | alt=|79x79px | Financial Secretary to the Treasury | Leads the government's growth agenda and oversees core Treasury business.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Financial Secretary to the Treasury - GOV.UK |url=https://www.gov.uk/government/ministers/financial-secretary-to-the-treasury |access-date=2025-08-15 |website=www.gov.uk |language=en}}</ref>

|- | Rachel Blake | alt=|80x80px | Economic Secretary to the Treasury{{Break}}City Minister | Responsible for financial services, debt reserves and managements, financial sanctions, economic crime, and the Treasury's interest in British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Financial Secretary to the Treasury - GOV.UK |url=https://www.gov.uk/government/ministers/financial-secretary-to-the-treasury |access-date=2025-08-15 |website=www.gov.uk |language=en}}</ref> |- |Dan Tomlinson | alt=|x80px | Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury | Responsible for tax policy and administration, customs/VAT, and oversight of HMRC.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury - GOV.UK |url=https://www.gov.uk/government/ministers/exchequer-secretary-to-the-treasury |access-date=2025-08-15 |website=www.gov.uk |language=en}}</ref>

|- |Lord Stockwood |alt=|80x80px |Minister of State for Investment |Responsible for Office for Investment, investor relations, investment events, investment delivery, life sciences and GREAT Board. Joint with Department of Business and Trade.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Minister of State (Minister for Investment) - GOV.UK |url=https://www.gov.uk/government/ministers/minister-of-state-minister-for-investment--2 |access-date=2025-10-26 |website=www.gov.uk |language=en}}</ref>

|- | Torsten Bell | alt=|x80px | Parliamentary Secretary for the Treasury{{Efn|name=Parliamentary Secretary|The roles of Parliamentary Secretary ''for'' the Treasury and Parliamentary Secretary ''to'' the Treasury are distinct and should not be confused, the former being a junior minister working in the Treasury while the latter is a sinecure position held by the Government Chief Whip}} | Supporting the Treasury's role across government and Treasury ministers in their duties.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |title=Parliamentary Secretary - GOV.UK |url=https://www.gov.uk/government/ministers/parliamentary-secretary--13 |access-date=2025-08-15 |website=www.gov.uk |language=en}}</ref> |- | Jonathan Reynolds | alt=|79x79px | Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury{{Efn|name=Parliamentary Secretary}} | Government Chief Whip, though formally a junior minister in the Treasury.<ref name=":3" /> |} {{notelist}} === Civil Servants === From October 2022, the Permanent Secretary to the Treasury is James Bowler. There are two Second Permanent Secretaries: Beth Russell and Jim O'Neill.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-06-11 |title=HM Treasury |url=https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/hm-treasury |access-date=2025-08-15 |website=GOV.UK |language=en}}</ref>

==Functions== HM Treasury is the United Kingdom's economic and finance ministry. It manages public spending and leads the government's economic strategy, with responsibility for fiscal policy (including the Budget and tax policy) and for controlling public expenditure across departments. It allocates resources through Spending Reviews and sets departmental budgets to deliver ministers' priorities and value for money. It also sets the strategic framework for the tax and customs system and works with HM Revenue & Customs on policy design and delivery.<ref>{{cite web |last=Bartrum |first=Olly |title=The history of HM Treasury |url=https://www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/explainer/history-hm-treasury |website=Institute for Government |date=29 January 2024 |access-date=15 August 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=HM Treasury: An overview of the department (2023–24) |url=https://www.nao.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/hm-treasury-overview-2023-24.pdf |website=National Audit Office |date=27 October 2024 |access-date=15 August 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Spending reviews |url=https://www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/explainer/spending-reviews |website=Institute for Government |date=29 January 2024 |access-date=15 August 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Departmental budgets |url=https://www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/explainer/departmental-budgets |website=Institute for Government |date=11 June 2025 |access-date=15 August 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=HM Revenue & Customs: An Overview 2023–24 |url=https://www.nao.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/hm-revenue-customs-overview-2023-24.pdf |website=National Audit Office |date=8 November 2024 |access-date=15 August 2025}}</ref>

In macroeconomic management, the Treasury sets the fiscal framework and coordinates fiscal policy with the Bank of England's operationally independent monetary policy. The government's fiscal rules and the role of the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) provides independent forecasts that accompany the Budget and assess performance against the rules.<ref>{{cite web |title=Interest rates and monetary policy: Economic indicators |url=https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/sn02802/ |website=House of Commons Library |date=7 August 2025 |access-date=15 August 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Making an independent Bank of England work better |url=https://lordslibrary.parliament.uk/economic-affairs-committee-report-making-an-independent-bank-of-england-work-better/ |website=House of Lords Library |date=15 April 2024 |access-date=15 August 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Budget Responsibility Bill (Charter for Budget Responsibility) |url=https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/cbp-10057/ |website=House of Commons Library |date=23 July 2024 |access-date=15 August 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=What is the Budget? |url=https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/what-is-the-budget/ |website=House of Commons Library |date=23 October 2024 |access-date=15 August 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Brief guide to the public finances |url=https://obr.uk/forecasts-in-depth/brief-guides-and-explainers/public-finances/ |website=Office for Budget Responsibility |date=3 April 2025 |access-date=15 August 2025}}</ref>

The Treasury also leads policy for the UK's financial services framework and legislation, while specialist regulators supervise firms and markets. In particular, HM Treasury is responsible for financial services policy and for taking the relevant legislation through Parliament; prudential and conduct supervision is carried out by the Prudential Regulation Authority and the Financial Conduct Authority within the statutory framework (notably the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000).<ref>{{cite web |title=Financial services in the UK |url=https://researchbriefings.files.parliament.uk/documents/SN06193/SN06193.pdf |website=House of Commons Library |date=18 November 2024 |access-date=15 August 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Financial services regulation: Adapting to change |url=https://www.nao.org.uk/reports/financial-services-regulation-adapting-to-change/ |website=National Audit Office |date=8 December 2023 |access-date=15 August 2025}}</ref>

As the government's central finance ministry, the Treasury works across Whitehall to ensure policies are affordable, consistent with the fiscal framework and deliverable within spending limits. Public spending plans and tax measures are adjusted at fiscal events (such as the annual Budget) in light of the economic outlook, Parliamentary scrutiny and statutory rules.

The Treasury has additional offices in Darlington and Norwich.<ref>{{cite web |title=Lessons learned: a planning and spending framework that delivers government priorities |url=https://www.nao.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/lessons-learned-a-planning-and-spending-framework.pdf |website=National Audit Office |date=27 October 2024 |access-date=15 August 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Budgets |url=https://www.instituteforgovernment.org.uk/explainer/budgets |website=Institute for Government |access-date=15 August 2025}}</ref>

== References == {{Reflist}}

{{HM Treasury}} {{Ministers at HM Treasury}} {{Economy of the United Kingdom}} {{Departments of the United Kingdom Government|type=Ministerial|title=HM Treasury}} {{Authority control}}

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Treasury}} Category:HM Treasury Category:Ministerial departments of the Government of the United Kingdom Category:British economic policy United Kingdom Category:Former banknote issuers of the United Kingdom Category:11th-century establishments in England