Paymaster General
Responsibilities
Current role holder
The Rt Hon James Murray MP
James Murray was appointed Financial Secretary to the Treasury and Paymaster General on 21 July 2026.
He was previously Secretary of State for Health and Social Care between 14 May 2026 and 20 July 2026, and Chief Secretary to the Treasury from 1 September 2025 to 14 May 2026. He previously held the office of Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury, having been shadow Financial Secretary for three and a half years before that.
He has served as the Member of Parliament for Ealing North since 2019.
He is a member of the Labour and Co-operative parties and served as the Deputy Mayor of London for Housing and Residential Development from 2016 to 2019.
Prior to being appointed Deputy Mayor, he served as a councillor for a decade, including six years as executive member for housing and development from 2010 to 2016.
Earlier in his career, he worked in a management consultancy.
Previous holders of this role
The Rt Hon Nick Thomas–Symonds MP
2024 to 2026
The Rt Hon John Glen MP
2023 to 2024
The Rt Hon Jeremy Quin
2022 to 2023
The Rt Hon Chris Philp MP
2022 to 2022
The Rt Hon Edward Argar MP
2022 to 2022
The Rt Hon Michael Ellis KC
2021 to 2022
The Rt Hon Penny Mordaunt
2020 to 2021
The Rt Hon Oliver Dowden CBE MP
2019 to 2020
The Rt Hon Jesse Norman MP
2019 to 2019
The Rt Hon Mel Stride MP
2017 to 2019
The Rt Hon Ben Gummer
2016 to 2017
The Rt Hon Matt Hancock
2015 to 2016
The Rt Hon Lord Maude of Horsham
2010 to 2015