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United Kingdom
Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury
Chief Whip of the House of Commons
Royal Arms of His Majesty's Government
Incumbent
Simon Hart
since 25 October 2022
HM Treasury
Style
TypeMinister of the Crown
Member of
Reports toPrime Minister
Residence12 Downing Street (official)
SeatWestminster
AppointerThe Monarch
(on the advice of the Prime Minister)
Inaugural holderSir Philip Warwick
Formation1660
Salary£121,326 per annum (2022)[1]
(including £86,584 MP salary)[2]
WebsiteHM Treasury

The Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury is the official title of the most senior whip of the governing party in the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Today, any official links between the Treasury and this office are nominal and the title of the office can be seen as a sinecure that allows the incumbent to draw a Government salary, attend Cabinet, and use a Downing Street residence, traditionally 12 Downing Street.

The position is currently held by Simon Hart since October 2022.[3]

History

The position of Secretary to the Treasury was created in 1660. Until 1711, there was only one Secretary to the Treasury; however, in that year, a second position was created to help deal with the increasing workload. This new position was known as the junior secretary to the Treasury, and the existing post as the senior secretary to the Treasury. Initially, when the position of Senior Secretary to the Treasury became vacant (except as the result of an election causing a change of government), the junior secretary was usually automatically promoted to the senior role. Over time, however, the roles of the Senior and Junior Secretaries began to diverge, the Senior Secretary post being used as a sinecure post for the chief whip, with no formal responsibilities to the Treasury. The junior secretary post remained a substantive position working in the Treasury. As such, the senior secretary became known as the parliamentary secretary to the Treasury while the junior secretary became known as Financial Secretary to the Treasury, and the 'automatic' promotion from Junior to Senior ceased. While the exact date on which this change occurred is disputed, it is agreed that the distinction was complete by 1830.[4] In the mid-nineteenth century, the parliamentary secretary to the Treasury was referred to as the patronage secretary to the Treasury.[5]

Parliamentary Secretaries to the Treasury, 1830–present

19th century

Thomas Edward Taylor, Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury from 1866 to 1868

20th century

21st century

References

  1. ^ "Salaries of Members of His Majesty's Government – Financial Year 2022–23" (PDF). 15 December 2022.
  2. ^ "Pay and expenses for MPs". parliament.uk. Retrieved 15 December 2022.
  3. ^ "Truss loyalists quit ahead of Sunak's new cabinet - here's who is out". Sky News. Retrieved 2022-10-25.
  4. ^ "Secretaries 1660-1870". British History Online. Retrieved 9 October 2016.
  5. ^ Colin, Thain; Wright, Maurice (1995). The Treasury and Whitehall: The Planning and Control of Public Expenditure, 1976–1993. Oxford: Clarendon Press. p. 87. ISBN 0-19-827784-9.
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