Alistair Darling

Alistair Darling MP.
Photo © Crown copyright 2007, used by permission.

Alistair Darling (born 28th November 1953) is the current British finance minister, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, responsible for administering the UK public revenue. He was appointed on 28th June 2007 by the Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, after ten years' service in various senior ministerial positions within the British government; the post is the highest executive office after Prime Minister, giving him the authority to deputise in Brown's absence. Since 1987, Darling has also been one of five Members of Parliament (MPs) for the city of Edinburgh in Scotland.

Ministerial career

Alistair Darling came to government with the election of the Labour Party and Tony Blair in 1997, following his earlier career as a solicitor, service as local councillor, election as MP for Edinburgh South West, and successive roles as Opposition spokesman on various issues. He was first appointed Chief Secretary to the Treasury (May 1997 - July 1998), deputising Gordon Brown as Chancellor - an experience which would make him the obvious choice for the finance portfolio in Brown's first Cabinet (the UK executive branch of government).

Darling was appointed Secretary of State for Social Security in July 1998, a post he held until the election of the second Labour government in June 2001. His next position was Secretary of State for the Department of Work and Pensions, until May 2002. He was then given two positions, as the Secretaries of State for Transport and Scotland, which he occupied until May 2006. His final job in Tony Blair's Cabinet was as Secretary of State for the Department of Trade and Industry, before being appointed Chancellor by Gordon Brown.

Chancellor of the Exchequer

One of Alistair Darling's first acts as Chancellor was to administer the resignation of Tony Blair as an MP; this was a routine parliamentary matter, in contrast to his first big test in the job: the credit crisis surrounding the Northern Rock bank in September 2007. A downturn in the bank's fortunes led to assistance from the Bank of England, triggering long queues outside UK branches as savers panicked and tried to withdraw their money. After a few days, and with the bank apparently in danger, Darling stepped in to guarantee the value of every account. The government was criticised for what appeared to be inactivity early on in the crisis.

Darling sparked controversy in the media and behind the scenes in August 2008, when he stated in an interview that the UK and global economies were the worst they had been for 60 years. His opinion was that the global recession was "going to be more profound and long-lasting than people thought." He also acknowledged that Labour was failing to connect with voters: "We've got to rediscover that zeal which won three elections, and that is a huge problem for us at the moment. People are pissed off with us. We really have to make our minds up; are we ready to try and persuade this country to support us for another term?" Darling also referred to the level of support for his chancellorship behind the scenes, saying, "There's lots of people who'd like to do my job. And no doubt actively trying to do it." Darling was strongly criticised by the Opposition for his comments, and experienced more flak outside the public gaze, as he revealed two years later in an interview where he likened briefings by the Conservative Party and supporters of Gordon Brown as "the forces of hell".