Kwasi Kwarteng

The Right Honourable Kwasi Kwarteng
Official portrait, 2022
Chancellor of the Exchequer
In office 6 September 2022 – 14 October 2022
Prime Minister	Liz Truss
Preceded by	Nadhim Zahawi
Succeeded by	Jeremy Hunt
Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
In office 8 January 2021 – 6 September 2022
Prime Minister	Boris Johnson
Preceded by	Alok Sharma
Succeeded by	Jacob Rees-Mogg
Junior ministerial offices 2018–2021 Minister of State for Business, Energy and Clean Growth In office 24 July 2019 – 8 January 2021 Prime Minister Boris Johnson Preceded by Claire Perry[a] Succeeded by Anne-Marie Trevelyan Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union In office 16 November 2018 – 24 July 2019 Prime Minister Theresa May Preceded by Suella Braverman Succeeded by Office abolished
Member of Parliament for Spelthorne
In office 6 May 2010 – 30 May 2024
Preceded by	David Wilshire
Succeeded by	Lincoln Jopp
Personal details
Born	Akwasi Addo Alfred Kwarteng (1975-05-26) 26 May 1975 (age 49) London, England
Political party	Conservative
Spouse	Harriet Edwards ​ (m. 2019)​
Children	1
Education	Eton College
Alma mater	University of Cambridge (BA, PhD)
Signature
Website	Campaign website
Academic background
Thesis	The political thought of the recoinage crisis of 1695–7 (2000)
Kwasi Kwarteng's voice Kwarteng promotes The Growth Plan, dubbed a "mini-budget" by the media Recorded 29 September 2022

Akwasi Addo Alfred Kwarteng (born 26 May 1975)^[3][4] is a British politician who served as the Chancellor of the Exchequer from 6 September to 14 October 2022 under Liz Truss and the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy from 2021 to 2022 under Boris Johnson. A member of the Conservative Party, he was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Spelthorne from 2010 to 2024.

Kwarteng was born in London to Ghanaian immigrant parents and was educated at St Paul's Juniors, Eton College and the University of Cambridge where he was a student at Trinity College, Cambridge. He worked as a columnist for The Daily Telegraph and as a financial analyst before standing for election to the House of Commons. As a backbencher, Kwarteng co-authored a number of papers and books, including After the Coalition (2011) and Britannia Unchained (2012). In November 2018, Kwarteng was appointed parliamentary under-secretary of state for Exiting the European Union by Theresa May. After May resigned in 2019, Kwarteng supported Boris Johnson's bid to become leader of the Conservative Party. Following Johnson's appointment as prime minister, he appointed Kwarteng as the minister of state for Business, Energy and Clean Growth. In January 2021, Kwarteng was promoted to the office of secretary of state for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, a role he retained throughout the remainder of Johnson's premiership.

After Johnson resigned in 2022, Kwarteng supported Truss's bid to become Conservative leader. Following Truss's appointment as prime minister, she appointed Kwarteng as Chancellor of the Exchequer, becoming the first black chancellor.^[5] On 23 September, Kwarteng announced various tax cuts in a mini-budget that was widely criticised and which caused the pound sterling to fall to its lowest-ever level against the United States dollar. Kwarteng was dismissed as chancellor on 14 October after 38 days, making him the second-shortest-serving holder of the office. He was succeeded by Jeremy Hunt, who was retained by Rishi Sunak following Truss's resignation on 25 October. Kwarteng stood down as an MP at the 2024 general election.

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