Alistair Darling

Who is Alistair Darling?

Alistair Darling is a British Labour Party politician who has been a Member of Parliament since 1987, currently for Edinburgh South West. He was the Chancellor of the Exchequer in the Labour Government from 2007 to 2010, and was one of only three people to have served in the Cabinet continuously from Labour's victory in 1997 until its defeat in 2010, the others being Gordon Brown and Jack Straw.

Darling was first appointed as Chief Secretary to the Treasury by Prime Minister Tony Blair in 1997, before being promoted to become Secretary of State for Work and Pensions in 1998. After spending four years at that department, he spent a further four years as Secretary of State for Transport, while also becoming Secretary of State for Scotland in 2003. Blair moved Darling for a final time in 2006, making him Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, before new Prime Minister Gordon Brown promoted Darling to replace himself as the Chancellor of the Exchequer in 2007, a position he remained in until 2010.