Gordon Brown/Timelines
Jump to navigation
Jump to search
Parliamentary Career
Opposition
1983 Elected Member of Parliament for Dunfermline East as a member of the Labour Party under the leadership of Neil Kinnock.
1967 Appointed Shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury
1989 Appointed Shadow Secretary of State for Trade and Industry
1992 Appointed Shadow Chancellor
- John Smith replaces Neil Kinnock as Leader of the Opposition.
1994 Labour Party leadership election following the death of John Smith
- Gordon Brown agrees not to stand against Tony Blair - who is then elected leader
Chancellor of the Exchequer
1997-98 Constitutional innovations.
- Independence for the Bank of England
- Five tests for Euro membership
- Code for Fiscal Stability
- Pre-budget reports
1997-2000 Fiscal contraction
- the budget balance changed from a deficit of 2.4 per cent of national income in 1996-7 to a surplus of 2.4 per cent in 2000-01, and the national debt fell from 42.5% of in 1996–97 to 30.7% of national income in 2000–01[1]
2000-2007 Public sector investment and fiscal expansion
- increased investment in health and education
- the current budget balance moved from a surplus of 2.4 per cengt of national income in 2000–01 to a deficit of 0.3 per cent of national income by 2007–08 and the national debt rose to 36.5 per cent of national income in 2007–08.[1]
2005 African loan offer
Prime Minister
2007-2009 Financial Crisis
2010 Northern Ireland agreement
2010 Deficit reduction plans
- Fiscal Responsibility Act[2] - 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
Opposition
Personal history
1951 Born
1972 Rector, Edinburgh University
1976: Politics lecturer, Glasgow College of Technology
1980: Television journalist, STV current affairs