Treasurer of the Conservative Party

The office of Treasurer of the Conservative Party was established in 1911, along with that of Chairman, as part of a wider reorganisation of the Conservative and Unionist Party's machinery following the party's failure to win the general elections of January and December 1910.[1]

The officeholders are responsible for fundraising, and in recent years, have sat on the Conservative Party Board.

## List

[edit]

This is a list of treasurers of the Conservative Party.[2]

Name | From | To  | Deputy | Notes

|
|
|
|

The Lord Farquhar | 1911 | 1923  |  | Created Viscount Farquhar in 1917, and Earl Farquhar in 1922
Sir George Younger | 1923 | 1929  |  | Created Viscount Younger of Leckie in 1923
Sir Samuel Hoare MP | 1929 | 1931  |  | MP (1910-44); created Viscount Templewood in 1944
The Lord Ebbisham | 1931 | 1933  |  |
The Lord Greenwood | 1933 | 1938  |  | Created Viscount Greenwood in 1937
The Lord Marchwood | 1938 | 1946  |  | Created Viscount Marchwood in 1945
Christopher Holland-Martin | 1947 | 1960  |  | Also an MP from 1951-1960; Died in office
The Lord De L'Isle and Dudley | 1948 | 1952  |  | Created Viscount De L'Isle in 1956
Oliver Poole | 1952 | 1955  |  | Created Baron Poole of Aldgate in 1958
Sir Henry Studholme MP | 1956 | 1962  |  | MP (1952-66); created a Baronet in 1956
Robert Allan MP | 1960 | 1965  |  | MP (1951-66); created Baron Allan of Kilmahew in 1973
Richard Stanley | 1962 | 1965  |  | Former MP (1950-6)
The Lord Chelmer | 1965 | 1977  |  |
Sir Tatton Brinton MP | 1966 | 1974  |  | MP (1964-74)
Sir Arnold Silverstone | 1974 | 1977  |  | Created Baron Ashdown in 1975; Died in office
William Clark MP | 1974 | 1975  |  | MP (1959-66, 1970-92); created Baron Clark of Kempston in 1992
Alistair McAlpine | 1975 | 1990  |  | Created Baron McAlpine of West Green in 1984
The Lord Boardman | 1979 | 1983  |  | Former MP (1967-74)
Sir Oulton Wade | 1982 | 1990  |  | Created Baron Wade of Chorlton in 1990
Sir Charles Johnston | 1984 | 1988  |  | Created Baron Johnston of Rockport in 1987
Sir Hector Laing | 1988 | 1993  |  | Created Baron Laing of Dunphail in 1991
The Lord Beaverbrook | 1990 | 1992  |  |
Sir John Cope MP | 1990 | 1992  |  | MP (1974-97); created Baron Cope of Berkeley in 1997
Tim Smith MP | 1992 | 1994  |  | MP (1977-9; 1982-97); Resigned as Treasurer during the 1994 Cash-for-questions affair
Philip Harris | 1993 | 1997  |  | Created Baron Harris of Peckham in 1995
Charles Hambro | 1993 | 1997  |  | Created Baron Hambro in 1994
Sir Graham Kirkham | 1997 | 1998  |  | Created Baron Kirkham in 1999
Michael Ashcroft | 1998 | 2001  |  | Created Baron Ashcroft in 2000
Howard Leigh | 2000 | 2005  |  | Created Baron Leigh of Hurley in 2013
Sir Stanley Kalms | 2001 | 2003  |  | Created Baron Kalms in 2004
George Magan | 2003 | 2007  |  | Created Baron Magan in 2011
Jonathan Marland | 2003 | 2007  |  | Created Baron Marland in 2006
Michael Spencer | 2007 | 2010  |  | Nominated for a peerage in 2013, 2015 and 2016, but blocked on each occasion by the House of Lords Appointments Commission[3][4][5] Created Baron Spencer at the fourth attempt in 2020
Richard Harrington | 2008 | 2010  |  | MP (2010-9); created Baron Harrington in 2022
Stanley Fink | 2009 | 2013  |  | Created Baron Fink in 2011
Catherine Meyer | 2010 | 2015  |  | Created Baroness Meyer in 2018
Peter Cruddas | 2011 | 2012  |  | Created Baron Cruddas in 2020. Had resigned as Treasurer in 2012 over a "cash for access" scandal; successfully sued the Sunday Times over their allegations in 2013, but in 2015 the Court of Appeal reduces the libel damages awarded earlier from £180,000 to £50,000, after they found the central "cash for access" allegation of the Sunday Times to be borne out by the facts, while other parts of their article were still deemed to be false and defamatory[6][7] Cruddas' nomination to the Lords had been opposed by the House of Lords Appointments Commission, who cited the Court of Appeal's ruling; however, Prime Minister Boris Johnson became the first Prime Minister to disregard a veto from the vetting body, and announced Cruddas's peerage all the same.[8]
Michael Farmer | 2011 | 2015  |  | Created Baron Farmer in 2014
James Lupton | 2013 | 2016  |  | Created Baron Lupton in 2015
Andrew Fraser | 2016 | 2018  | Jane Keene | Created Baron Fraser of Corriegarth in 2016
Sir Mick Davis[9] | 2016 | 2019  | Mike Chattey OBE | Declined a peerage in 2019[10]
Aamer Sarfraz | 2019 | 2020  | Jane Keene | Created Baron Sarfraz in 2019
Sir Ehud Sheleg[11] | 2019 | 2021  |  | Knighted in 2019
Malik Karim[12] | 2021 | 2022  |  |
Graham Edwards[12] | 2022 | present  |  |

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Thevoz (2016), p. 4.
2. ^ Thevoz (2016), pp. 24-25.
3. ^ "Michael Spencer's allies decry 'unfairness' in lack of peerage". Financial Times. 2016-07-24. Retrieved 2023-04-06.
4. ^ "David Cameron's honours list has been 'blocked'". The Independent. 2016-08-02. Retrieved 2023-04-06.
5. ^ Hope, Christopher (2016-08-01). "David Cameron's resignation honours list humiliatingly blocked as committee vetoes peerage for former party treasurer". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 2023-04-06.
6. ^ Greenslade, Roy (17 March 2015). "Appeal court reduces damages award against Sunday Times to £50,000". The Guardian. Retrieved 14 June 2019.
7. ^ Ponsford, Dominic (17 March 2015). "Sunday Times libel damages to Peter Cruddas reduced on appeal from £180k to £50k". Press Gazette. Retrieved 14 June 2019.
8. ^ Letter from the Prime Minister to Lord Bew, 21 December 2020
9. ^ Deputy Political Editor, Sam Coates (2018-05-18). "Gallery chief who donated £550,000 set to become Tory treasurer". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 2018-07-26. `{{cite news}}`: `|last=` has generic name (help)
10. ^ "New Tory sleaze row as donors who pay £3m get seats in House of Lords". ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 2023-04-06.
11. ^ Deputy Political Editor, Sam Coates (2018-05-18). "Gallery chief who donated £550,000 set to become Tory treasurer". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 2018-07-26. `{{cite news}}`: `|last=` has generic name (help)
12. ^ a b "Party Structure and Organisation". conservatives.com. Retrieved 24 January 2022.

## Further reading

[edit]

* David Butler and Gareth Butler, Twentieth Century British Political Facts 1900–2000 (Macmillan, 2000) p. 137
* Seth Alexander Thévoz,  "Every Treasurer of the Party Has Gone to the Lords, and I Hope I Don't Set a Precedent by Being the First Who Doesn't": Conservative Party Treasurers and Peerages, 1986-2016 (Oxford: Gwilym Gibbon Centre for Public Policy, Nuffield College, Oxford University, September 2016)