Lord O’Neill declines role in Burnham government because he doesn't want 'financial constraints'
The Peer turned down the position after being advised he would have to place his business interests in a blind trust if he took on the role
Lord Jim O’Neill has ruled out taking a formal role in Andy Burnham's government, saying he does not want the financial "constraints" that it would bring.
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There had been speculation that the crossbench peer and former treasury minister could become the Prime Minister's chief economic advisor as he assembled his new administration.
But Lord O’Neill, a former chief economist at Goldman Sachs, has decided against a potential position after being advised he would have to place his business interests in a blind trust if he took on the role.
Blind trusts are intended to avoid public conflicts of interest by preventing public officials from knowing how their investments are being managed.
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Lord O’Neill insisted the decision was not the result of any policy disagreement with Mr Burnham, who took office on July 20.
"I’ve decided to not take a formal role," he told the Financial Times.
"I enjoy what I’m doing too much, and I don’t want the constraints of a blind trust and all the constraints that would be necessary."
He added: “It’s not because of any policy disagreements. I’m a massive fan of the focus on devolution and I hope Andy and his team will be bold on this and everything else.”
He said he hoped to maintain an informal relationship with the Prime Minister and his team moving forward.
“I came to the conclusion I’d rather just be a voice if they want to want to talk to me – that is, occasionally – and get on with the rest of the things in my life," he told the BBC.
He suggested Mr Burnham could boost the UK’s economy by replicating the growth seen in Greater Manchester over the last 15 years in other regions.
“If you can repeat that around a number of places with a lot of people, then if you just simply add up the mass, then the national economic performance would improve,” he said.
Optimism under the new prime minister could also spark a boost and bring down the savings rate, he added.
“If people can start to feel a bit more upbeat about things, there’s a decent chance that savings rate comes down, and people start to consume and spend more,” he said.
Amid speculation of coming tax rises to fund Mr Burnham’s plans, he said he was not in favour of so-called wealth taxes, in particular for “capital gains for genuine risk-taking things like venture capital”.
“We need more genuine risk-taking and more entrepreneurs, and we need to boost these sort of green shoots of growth that are there,” he said.
He said the triple lock on pensions and a “more sensible approach” to welfare spending should be looked at as part of efforts to address the “underlying dynamics” behind debt levels and rising government spending over recent years.
Lord O’Neill served as commercial secretary under former Conservative chancellor George Osborne between 2015-2016 after being made a life peer in 2015.