Nicholas Macpherson

Nicholas Ian Macpherson, Baron Macpherson of Earl's Court, (born 14 July 1959) is a former senior British civil servant. He served as the Permanent Secretary to the Treasury from 2005 to 2016.

Macpherson was Permanent Secretary to three Chancellors. He managed the department through the financial and wider economic crisis which began in 2007.

Macpherson was nominated for a crossbench peerage in David Cameron's 2016 resignation Honours, and joined the House of Lords on 4 October 2016.

Early life

Macpherson was educated at Ashdown House and Eton College. He later attended Balliol College, Oxford (where he read Politics and Economics) and University College London.

Career Macpherson first worked as an economist at the CBI and Peat Marwick Consulting.

Treasury Macpherson entered HM Treasury in 1985. From 1993 to 1997, he was Principal Private Secretary to the Chancellor of the Exchequer; he oversaw the transition from Kenneth Clarke to Gordon Brown as Chancellor. From 1998 to 2001, he was Director of Welfare Reform. From 2001 to 2004, he was head of the Public Services Directorate, where he managed the 2000 and 2002 spending reviews. From 2004 to 2005 Macpherson managed the Budget and Public Finance Directorate, where he was responsible for tax policy and the budget process.

Macpherson succeeded Sir Gus (now Lord) O'Donnell as Permanent Secretary of the Treasury, when the latter moved to be the Cabinet Secretary and Head of the Civil Service in 2005. Macpherson came to prominence during the 2014 Scottish independence referendum when he advised George Osborne against entering into a currency union with any Scottish independent state, which was contrary to initial Scottish National Party plans.

Other positions Macpherson was a visiting fellow at Nuffield College, Oxford, and is a visiting professor at King's College London.

Honours Macpherson was appointed Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath (KCB) in the 2009 New Year Honours, and promoted to Knight Grand Cross of the same Order (GCB) in the 2015 Birthday Honours.

Macpherson was nominated for a life peerage in the 2016 Prime Minister's Resignation Honours and was created Baron Macpherson of Earl's Court, of Earl's Court in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, on 4 October.