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United Kingdom First Lord of the Treasury
Royal Arms of His Majesty's Government
Flag of the United Kingdom
Incumbent Sir Keir Starmer since 5 July 2024
Residence	10 Downing Street
Seat	Westminster
Appointer	The King appoints ex officio the prime minister
Term length	At His Majesty's pleasure
Formation	1126(as Lord High Treasurer) 1612(as First Lord of the Commission of the Treasury) 1714(commission permanent since resignation of the 1st Duke of Shrewsbury)
First holder	Nigel (bishop of Ely)(as Lord High Treasurer) 1st Earl of Northampton(as First Lord of the Commission) 1st Earl of Halifax(when the commission became permanent)
Deputy	Second Lord of the Treasury
Website	Gov.uk

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v t e

The First Lord of the Treasury is the head of the Lords Commissioners of the Treasury exercising the ancient office of Lord High Treasurer in the United Kingdom. Constitutional convention holds that the office of First Lord is held by the Prime Minister. The office is not the United Kingdom's finance minister; this role is instead held by the Chancellor of the Exchequer, who is the second lord of the Treasury.

Lords of the Treasury

As of the beginning of the 17th century, the running of the Treasury was frequently entrusted to a commission, rather than to a single individual. Since 1714, it has permanently been in commission. The commissioners have always since that date been referred to as Lords Commissioners of the Treasury, and adopted ordinal numbers to describe their seniority. Eventually in the middle of the same century, the first lord of the Treasury came to be seen as the natural head of the overall ministry running the country, and, as of the time of Robert Walpole (Whig), began to be known, unofficially, as the prime minister.

The term prime minister was initially, but decreasingly, used as a term of derogation; it was first used officially in a royal warrant only in 1905. William Pitt the Younger said the prime minister "ought to be the person at the head of the finances"—though Pitt also served as chancellor of the exchequer for the entirety of his time as prime minister, so his linkage of the finance portfolio to the premiership was wider than merely proposing the occupation of the first lordship by the prime minister.

Prior to 1841 the first lord of the Treasury also held the office of chancellor of the exchequer unless he was a peer and thus barred from that office; in this case, the second lord of the Treasury usually served as chancellor. Since 1841, the chancellor has always been second lord of the Treasury when he was not also prime minister. By convention, the other Lords Commissioners of the Treasury are also Government Whips in the House of Commons.

Official residence

10 Downing Street is the official residence of the first lord of the Treasury, not the office of prime minister. Chequers, a country house in Buckinghamshire, is the official country residence of the prime minister, used as a weekend and holiday home, although the residence has also been used by other senior members of government.

List of first lords (1714–1922)

Much of this list overlaps with the list of prime ministers of the United Kingdom, but there are some notable differences, principally concerning Lord Salisbury, who was prime minister but not first lord in 1885–86, 1887–92 and 1895–1902. Those first lords who were simultaneously prime minister are indicated in bold; those who were considered prime minister only during part of their term are indicated in bold italic.

Thereafter the posts of first lord and prime minister have continually been held by the same person (see List of prime ministers of the United Kingdom § 20th century).

See also

• Chief Baron of the Exchequer
• List of lords commissioners of the Treasury
• Minister for the Civil Service, by convention also the Prime Minister
• Secretary to the Treasury

Notes

1. Grafton became Prime Minister on 14 October 1768.
2. Disraeli became Earl of Beaconsfield in 1876.
3. Salisbury continued to serve as Prime Minister until 11 August 1892.
4. Balfour became Prime Minister on 11 July 1902.

References

1. Blick & Jones 2010.
2. First Lord of the Treasury, gov.uk, retrieved 22 March 2018

Sources

• Blick, Andrew; Jones, George (7 June 2010), "The power of the Prime Minister", History & Policy, United Kingdom, retrieved 7 April 2020
• Haydn, Joseph Timothy (1890), The Book of Dignities, London: W. H. Allen and Co., OL 13505280M
• Pryde, E. B.; Greenway, D. E.; Porter, S.; Roy, I., eds. (23 February 1996), Handbook of British Chronology (3rd ed.), Cambridge University Press, ISBN 978-0-521-56350-5

v t e Downing Street
Buildings	9 Downing Street Chief Whip's Office 10 Downing Street 11 Downing Street 12 Downing Street Privy Council Office
Residence	First Lord of the Treasury Prime Minister Second Lord of the Treasury (Chancellor of the Exchequer) Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury Government Chief Whip Chief Mouser to the Cabinet Office
Prime Minister's Office	Principal Private Secretary Parliamentary Private Secretary Political Secretary Chief of Staff Director of Communications Press Secretary Director of Policy Official Spokesperson
Miscellaneous	Downing Street Christmas Tree Ministerial Broadcast Number 10 Policy Unit Prime Minister's New Year Message Press Briefing Room Partygate Portrait of Margaret Thatcher

v t e UK cabinet portfolios
Cabinet of the United Kingdom
Cabinet ministers	Prime Minister / First Lord of the Treasury / Minister for the Union / Minister for the Civil Service Deputy Prime Minister / Housing, Communities and Local Government Secretary Chancellor of the Exchequer Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Secretary Home Secretary Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster Defence Secretary Energy Security and Net Zero Secretary Justice Secretary / Lord Chancellor Science, Innovation and Technology Secretary Health and Social Care Secretary Lord President of the Council / Leader of the House of Commons Leader of the House of Lords / Lord Privy Seal Business and Trade Secretary / President of the Board of Trade Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Secretary Work and Pensions Secretary Education Secretary / Minister for Women and Equalities Transport Secretary Culture, Media and Sport Secretary Northern Ireland Secretary Scottish Secretary Welsh Secretary
Also attending Cabinet	Chief Whip / Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury Chief Secretary to the Treasury Attorney General for England and Wales / Advocate General for Northern Ireland Minister of State for International Development

• HM Treasury
• Lists of government ministers of the United Kingdom
• Ministerial offices in the United Kingdom
• British Prime Minister's Office
• 1714 establishments in Great Britain