Burnham economic adviser O’Neill rules out government job – BBC News
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Burnham economic adviser O’Neill rules out government job
Image source: Getty Images
Image caption: Jim O’Neill (image from 2014)
By David Cornock, Political correspondent, and Ottilie Mitchell
Published 10 minutes ago
The economist Lord Jim O’Neill, who has been advising the prime minister, has stated he will not be accepting a job in Andy Burnham’s government.
Lord O’Neill, a crossbench peer, previously served as a treasury minister under the Conservatives.
As first reported by the Financial Times, he cited the constraints involved in a formal role as the reason for his decision.
The former chief economist at Goldman Sachs expressed enjoyment in his current position and did not wish to give up control of his business interests to comply with official rules, including the requirement to place shares in blind trusts.
"I’ve decided to not take a formal role," he said.
"It’s not because of any policy disagreements. I’m a massive fan of the focus on devolution and I hope Andy and his team will be bold on this and everything else."
He added, "I’ll continue to, hopefully, maintain an informal relationship with the PM and his team."
From 2015-2016, Lord O’Neill served as the commercial secretary to the Treasury under then-Chancellor George Osborne.
The peer, who grew up in Greater Manchester, played a key role in advancing the Conservatives’ Northern Powerhouse agenda, aimed at boosting the economy of Northern England.
Lord O’Neill is also recognized for coining the term Bric in 2001 to describe leading developing or newly industrialised countries with significant growth potential and, consequently, attractive investment returns. The original four nations – Brazil, Russia, India, and China – later became the Brics when South Africa joined.
