Gordon Brown/Timelines: Difference between revisions
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* November 2008 The head of the [[International Monetary Fund|IMF]] asks for a coordinated [[fiscal stimulus]] of 2 per cent of GDP[http://www.imf.org/external/np/tr/2008/tr081115.htm] | * November 2008 The head of the [[International Monetary Fund|IMF]] asks for a coordinated [[fiscal stimulus]] of 2 per cent of GDP[http://www.imf.org/external/np/tr/2008/tr081115.htm] | ||
* November 2008 Chancellor Darling announces a £20 billion [[fiscal stimulus]] including a temporary reduction in [[Taxation#Taxes on consumption|value added tax]] (amounting to about 1 per cent of GDP); and suspends the [[Fiscal policy/Addendum#The UK's Code for Fiscal Stability|code for fiscal stability]]. | * November 2008 Chancellor Darling announces a £20 billion [[fiscal stimulus]] including a temporary reduction in [[Taxation#Taxes on consumption|value added tax]] (amounting to about 1 per cent of GDP); and suspends the [[Fiscal policy/Addendum#The UK's Code for Fiscal Stability|code for fiscal stability]]. | ||
* January 2009 The Chancellor authorises the [[Bank of England]] to set up | * January 2009 The Chancellor authorises the [[Bank of England]] to set up a Treasury-financed ''Asset Purchase Facility'' to buy high-quality assets for the purpose of [[quantitative easing]] operations [http://www.bankofengland.co.uk/markets/apf/]. | ||
* February 2010 ''Fiscal Responsibility Act''<ref>[http://www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts2010/en/ukpgaen_20100003_en.pdf Fiscal Responsibility Act, Stationery Office, February 2010]</ref> - imposes a duty on the Treasury to ensure that by the financial year ending 2014 public sector net borrowing as a percentage of GDP is at least halved from its level for the financial year ending 2010, and to make continuing reductions thereafter. | * February 2010 ''Fiscal Responsibility Act''<ref>[http://www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts2010/en/ukpgaen_20100003_en.pdf Fiscal Responsibility Act, Stationery Office, February 2010]</ref> - imposes a duty on the Treasury to ensure that by the financial year ending 2014 public sector net borrowing as a percentage of GDP is at least halved from its level for the financial year ending 2010, and to make continuing reductions thereafter. | ||
Revision as of 15:28, 28 May 2010
Parliamentary Career
Opposition 1983-97
- 1983 Elected Member of Parliament for Dunfermline East as a member of the Labour Party under the leadership of Neil Kinnock.
- (Maiden speech[1])
- 1984 Brown attends Democratic National Convention on San Francisco
1987 General election: Conservative 46% 358 seats; Labour 30% 155 seats; Liberal/SDP alliance 24% 10seats
- 1987 Brown appointed Shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury
- 1989 Appointed Shadow Secretary of State for Trade and Industry
1992 General election: Conservative 42% 336 seats; Labour 34% 271 seats; Liberal Democrats 18% 20seats
- Brown appointed Shadow Chancellor
- John Smith replaces Neil Kinnock as Leader of the Opposition.
- 1993 3-day visit to the United States and meeting with Alan Greenspan.
- 1994 Death of John Smith
- 31 May - Meeting with Tony Blair at the Granita restaurant
- 8 September - Strategy conference at the Chewton Glen hotel
1997 General election: Labour 43% 418 seats; Conservative 31% 165 seats; Liberal Democrats 17% 46seats
Chancellor of the Exchequer 1997-2007
- Bank of England Act 1998[2], gave the Bank responsibility for setting interest rates to meet the Government's stated inflation target.
- Five tests for Euro membership
- Code for Fiscal Stability
- Pre-budget reports
- Budget 1997[3]
- Budget 1998[4]
- Budget 1999[5]
- Budget 2000[6]
- Financial Services and Markets Act 2000[7] Establishes the Financial Services Authority to combine the functions of 6 regulatory bodies
- Budget 2001[8]
2001 General election: Labour 40% 413 seats; Conservative 32% 166 seats; Liberal Democrats 18% 52seats
- Budget 2002[9]
- Enterprise Act 2002[10] gives political independence and additional investigatory and punitive powers to the competition authorities
- Budget 2003[11]
- Budget 2004[12]
- Budget 2005[13]
- Better Regulation Commission[14]
2005 General election: Labour 35% 356 seats; Conservative 32% 198 seats; Liberal Democrats 22% 62 seats
=
- Chair of the International Monetary and Finance Committee 1999-2007
Prime Minister 2007-2010
- June 2007 Tony Blair retires, Gordon Brown becomes Prime Minister and Alastair Darling becomes Chancellor of the Exchequer.
- November 2007 credit crunch begins as UK banking system suffers losses as a result of the subprime mortgage crisis[17]
- February 2008 The Northern Rock bank is "nationalised [18].
- April 2008 * Bank of England announces its Special Liquidity Scheme to allow banks to swap some of their illiquid assets for liquid Treasury Bills for up to three years [19].
- September 2008 collapse of the United States Lehman Brothers investment bank triggers the culmination of the financial crash of 2008
- October 2008 £500 billion bank rescue plan [1] [2] including powers to take equity stakes in ailing banks and an unlimited undertaking to guarantee bank loans.
- October 2008 visits to Paris and Washington: Britain's bank rescue plan adopted in the EU and the USA[3]
- November 2008 The head of the IMF asks for a coordinated fiscal stimulus of 2 per cent of GDP[20]
- November 2008 Chancellor Darling announces a £20 billion fiscal stimulus including a temporary reduction in value added tax (amounting to about 1 per cent of GDP); and suspends the code for fiscal stability.
- January 2009 The Chancellor authorises the Bank of England to set up a Treasury-financed Asset Purchase Facility to buy high-quality assets for the purpose of quantitative easing operations [21].
- February 2010 Fiscal Responsibility Act[4] - imposes a duty on the Treasury to ensure that by the financial year ending 2014 public sector net borrowing as a percentage of GDP is at least halved from its level for the financial year ending 2010, and to make continuing reductions thereafter.
2010 General election Conservative 36% 306 seats; Liberal Democrats 23% 57 seats, Labour 29% 258 seats.
Opposition
Personal history
- 1951 Born, Glasgow, Son of John Brown, a Presbeterian church minister
- 1954 The family move to Kirkaldy
- 1961 Starts at Kirkaldy High School
- 1966 Passes Higher School Certificate (A-level equivalent) examinations with 5 A grades
- 1967 Starts at Edinburgh University
- becomes a serious Rugby player, but sporting career is ended by an accident in which he loses the sight of his left eye
- 1970 Awarded a Master of Arts (with 1st class honours)
- 1973 Elected Student Rector, Edinburgh University
- Becomes a member of the Scottish Labour Party's National Executive
- 1976: Politics lecturer, Glasgow College of Technology
- Selected as prospective parliamentary candidate for Edinburgh South
- 1980: Journalist (current affairs) Scottish Television
- 1982: Doctor of Philosophy, Edinburgh University
- 1983: Selected as prospective parliamentary candidate for Dunfermline East - and elected to parliament
- 1996: Appointed Member of Privy Council
- 2000: Marriage to Sarah Macaulay