John Healey

John Healey is the Labour Member of Parliament for Rawmarsh and Conisbrough and the Chancellor of the Exchequer. Born 13 February 1960, he was born in Wakefield and educated at Lady Lumley's Comprehensive School, Pickering, and St Peter's School in York and Christ's College, Cambridge. He studied Social and Political Sciences at Christ's College, University of Cambridge, graduating in 1982, with academic training combining political theory, economics, and institutional analysis.

Prior to entering Parliament, Healey worked in the voluntary sector from 1984 to 1990 with the Royal National Institute for the Deaf, the Royal Association for Disability and Rehabilitation and MIND campaigning to improve rights and services for disabled people. He was Campaigns Director at the Trades Union Congress before entering Parliament, serving from 1994 to 1997. Healey entered Parliament at the 1997 general election as Member of Parliament for Wentworth.

He previously held various junior ministerial positions under Tony Blair and Gordon Brown from 2001 to 2010. Under Brown, he served as Minister of State for Local Government from 2007 to 2009, and then in a cabinet-attending role as Minister of State for Housing and Planning from 2009 to 2010. Following the 2010 general election, he was elected to the Shadow Cabinet and appointed Shadow Secretary of State for Health by Ed Miliband. He was Shadow Housing Secretary from 2015 to 2020 and Shadow Health Secretary from 2010-2011.

Career history

• Chancellor of the Exchequer (July 2026–present)
• Secretary of State for Defence (July 2024–June 2026)
• Shadow Secretary of State for Defence (2020–2024)
• Shadow Secretary of State for Housing (2016–2020)
• Minister of State for Housing and Planning (2009–2010)

What Healey could bring to Chancellor of the Exchequer: With experience spanning Treasury roles as Economic and Financial Secretary, Parliamentary Private Secretary to Chancellor Gordon Brown, and extensive Shadow Cabinet exposure to economic and housing policy, Healey brings deep governmental financial expertise. His Treasury service involved fiscal policy, financial regulation, and economic planning during periods of both growth and financial instability. His background in disability rights advocacy and housing policy demonstrates commitment to social outcomes alongside economic management, while his defence background signals interest in fiscal discipline and strategic spending prioritization.