Who is Kwasi Kwarteng, Britain’s former Chancellor?
Just 38 days into his role as Chancellor of the Exchequer, Kwasi Kwarteng has been sacked by Prime Minister Liz Truss.
After being appointed in early September, the Conservative MP for the Surrey seat of Spelthorne implemented an unpopular economic policy and crashed the pound to a 37-year low against the US Dollar.
Born in 1975, Waltham Forest, London he is the single child of Alfred K. Kwarteng and Charlotte Boaitey-Kwarteng. Both moved from Ghana in the 1960s and instilled a strong work ethic in the now 47-year-old.
Often praised for his intelligence, Kwarteng won a scholarship to Eton College, later moving onto Trinity College in Cambridge to study History. He completed his studies with Bachelor and PhD degrees in British History.
After his studies the former Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Clean Growth became a financial analyst for JP Morgan, later working for the hedge fund, Odey Asset Management. Its founder, Tory donor, Crispin Odey, recently came into large sums of money as a result of shorting the pound after the recent mini-budget.
Moving on from the city, Kwarteng became a journalist, gaining a Daily Telegraph column and writing for FHM magazine.
His writing soon shifted towards Empire and Colonialism, completing his book, Ghosts of Empire in 2011, a deep look at the imperialist mess that was the British Empire, suggesting a different world view to many of his colleagues. However, infamously he co-wrote the book Britannia Unchained which described British workers as the “worst idlers in the world”.
Beyond his previous jobs he attempted to cut his political teeth in 2005, standing in Brent East, and becoming Chairman of the Conservative think-tank The Bow Group in 2006. Two years later he was a candidate for the London Assembly. In 2010 he eventually became a Member of Parliament.
The expected rise through the Conservative party didn’t take off as quickly as other 2010 incumbents. In 2017 he was appointed Parliamentary Private Secretary to then Chancellor, Phillip Hammond, a year later becoming a Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Exiting the EU.
As an ardent Boris Johnson supporter he was awarded the role of Minister of State for the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy and appointed to the Privy Council in 2019.
In his final move before becoming Chancellor this year, Karteng was promoted to Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy in 2021.
