Britain has a new occupant at Number 11 Downing street, next to the Famous Number 10. And this time, its a woman.
Rachel Jane Reeves, born on February 13, 1979 is a prominent British politician known for her role as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Leeds West.
She was born in Lewisham, London, to parents who were teachers.
Her parents separated when she was at primary school and she and her sister Ellie, also a Labour MP, were shuttled between separate homes.
During the school holidays, the sisters would spend time with their grandparents.
They would be taken to do the rounds of relatives’ houses, who would give them a 20p or 50p piece each. At the end of their week, they were taken to the local toy shop to choose their goodies. While Ellie would spend all of her cash, the young Rachel would allow herself a smaller treat and save most of the money.
Decades later, Chancellor Reeves would say, that kind of restraint defines her.
Financial prudence was a strong theme in Reeves’ upbringing. In interviews, she recalls her mother showing her how to balance the books, telling the BBC last year: “We weren’t poor, but we didn’t have money to waste.”
During her school years, she achieved success as a chess player, winning the British Under-14 Girls Chess Championship.
Rachel Reeves holds a Master’s degree from the London School of Economics, and a degree in Philosophy, Politics and Economics from New College, Oxford. Her career began at the Bank of England and later at HBOS, where she gained valuable experience that has equipped her with a strong understanding of financial matters and economic policies.
She has said she was politicised by her own experience of public services while attending Cator Park School for Girls in Beckenham, and seeing the extent of cuts at her school where the library had been turned into a classroom and the sixth form consisted of “two pre-fab huts in the playground”.
At the age of 16, Reeves joined the Labour Party.
The path to Parliament was not clear for Reeves though. There were two failed campaigns.
On entering Parliament however, she rose quickly up the ranks. She was appointed to a number of key Shadow roles.
She was Shadow Pensions Minister from october 2010 to october 2011.
She was promoted to the post of Shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury in October 2011.
She was appointed Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions in 2013, Reeves proposed that anyone unemployed for two years, or one year if under 25 years old, would be required to take a guaranteed job or lose access to benefits. This caused controversy within the Labour Party.
She caused further controversy in early 2015 by stating “We [Labour] don’t want to be seen as, and we’re not, the party to represent those who are out of work”.
When Keir Starmer succeeded Corbyn as Labour leader in 2020 after winning the party leadership election, Reeves was appointed as Shadow Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, with responsibility for Labour’s response to Brexit and shadowing Michael Gove, then secretary of state for levelling-up.
Reeves moved into the role of Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer in a shadow cabinet reshuffle on 9 May 2021.
Reeves is married to Nicholas Joicey, a civil servant and former prime minister Gordon Brown’s former private secretary and speech writer. The couple have two daughters.
She’s a practising Christian, although during the 2024 election campaign she publicly apologised to her vicar for her recent absence from church, saying “I’ve been quite busy.”
As Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer, Reeves opposed aspects of the budgets and was particularly critical of the budget during the short lived tenure of prime minister Liz Truss as it led to financial instability.
Following Labour’s landslide victory in the 2024 general election, Reeves was appointed as Chancellor of the Exchequer. She became the first woman to hold the office of Chancellor in its 800-year history. On taking office, Reeves stated that since there is “not a huge amount of money” her focus will be on “unlocking” private-sector investment, as she believes “private-sector investment is the lifeblood of a successful economy.”. Reeves also announced her first budget would be released later in the year in the autumn.
The import of her landmark appointment is not lost on her. “it’s the honour of my life..” She said.
“It comes with a historic responsibility as the first woman to be appointed chancellor. To every young woman and girl watching this: let today show that there should be no ceilings on your ambitions, your hopes or your dreams.”
