Unfit To Govern

Born: born 23 May 1971
Where: London
Father: Sir Peter Osborne, 17th Baronet,
School: Two independent schools in west London; at Norland Place School in Holland Park and St Paul’s School in Barnes (near Hammersmith)
Further Ed: Magdalen College at the University of Oxford, where he received a 2:1 in Modern History

Osborne is the eldest son of four children and heir of Sir Peter Osborne, 17th Baronet, who co-founded the firm of fabric and wallpapers designers, Osborne & Little. Originally named Gideon, he changed his name to George when he was 13. In an interview in July 2005, Osborne said: “It was my small act of rebellion. I never liked it. When I finally told my mother she said, ‘Nor do I’. So I decided to be George after my grandfather, who was a war hero. Life was easier as a George; it was a straightforward name.”

He joined the Conservative Research Department in 1994 and became head of the Political Section. Elected as the Member of Parliament for Tatton, Cheshire, in June 2001, he succeeded the Independent MP Martin Bell, who had famously defeated the controversial former Conservative minister Neil Hamilton at the 1997 election. Osborne won with a majority of 8,611, becoming (at that time) the youngest Conservative MP in the House of Commons. At the 2005 election, he was re-elected with an increased majority.

George is married to the writer Frances Osborne. They have two young children and they live in London and Cheshire.

Following the 2005 general election, he was promoted to Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer at the young age of 33 by the then-Conservative Party leader Michael Howard. His appointment to such a senior shadow cabinet post at such a young age surprised many Conservative MPs.

In 2009, he received criticism for the way he had handled his expenses, after he was found to have “flipped” his second  home, changing which property he designated as his second home in order to pay less capital gains tax. The Lib Dems estimated he owed £55,000 to the public purse as a result of this.

Osborne was appointed Chancellor of the Exchequer on 12 May 2010 and as per custom with Cabinet Minsters, was sworn in as a Privy Counsellor the next day.

On 24 May 2010, he outlined £6.2bn cuts. Among the bigger savings for this financial year outlined by Osborne were £683m at the Department for Transport, £780m at Communities and Local Government, £836m at Business, £670m at Education and £325m Department for Justice. Osborne said: “We simply cannot afford to increase public debt at the rate of £3bn each week. Our huge public debts threatened financial stability and if left unchecked would derail the economic recovery.” He continued saying “Public borrowing is only taxation deferred and it would be deeply irresponsible to continue to accumulate vast debts that would have to be paid off by our children, and our grand children for many decades to come.“^[

I know it’s unfair to write this in a profile but the cuts initiated in his emergency budget will have no effect on the wealth or financial status of George Osborne.

Source links: Tom Watson MP – George Osborne, Wikipedia – George Osborne, George Osbortne