Jonathan Hopkin Hill, Baron Hill of Oareford, (born 24 July 1960) is a British Conservative politician and former

European Commissioner for Financial Stability, Financial Services and Capital Markets Union The European Commissioner for Financial Stability, Financial Services and the Capital Markets Union is the member of the European Commission responsible for banking and finance. The current officeholder is Maria Luís Albuquerque. Responsibiliti ...

. Hill was

Leader of the House of Lords The leader of the House of Lords is a member of the Cabinet of the United Kingdom who is responsible for arranging government business in the House of Lords. The post is also the leader of the governing party in the House of Lords who acts ...

and

Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster The Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster is a ministerial office in the Government of the United Kingdom. Excluding the prime minister, the chancellor is the highest ranking minister in the Cabinet Office, immediately after the prime minister ...

from 2013 to 2014. Prior to that, he served as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Schools from 2010 to 2013 in the Conservative-Lib Dem Government. Hill, a former political lobbyist and PR consultant, was special adviser to Cabinet Minister

Kenneth Clarke Kenneth Harry Clarke, Baron Clarke of Nottingham (born 2 July 1940) is a British politician who served as Home Secretary from 1992 to 1993 and Chancellor of the Exchequer from 1993 to 1997. A member of the Conservative Party (UK), Conservative ...

and an adviser to the Conservative Prime Minister

John Major Sir John Major (born 29 March 1943) is a British retired politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party from 1990 to 1997. Following his defeat to Ton ...

before being appointed a Government Minister in 2010. Prime Minister

David Cameron David William Donald Cameron, Baron Cameron of Chipping Norton (born 9 October 1966) is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2010 to 2016. Until 2015, he led the first coalition government in the UK s ...

put Hill's name forward, on 15 July 2014, to be the next British EU Commissioner, upon which Lord Hill resigned from the Cabinet. On 10 September 2014, President Juncker appointed Hill as the European Commissioner for Financial Stability, Financial Services and Capital Markets Union. He took office as Britain's representative in the

Juncker Commission The Juncker Commission was the European Commission in office from 1 November 2014 to 30 November 2019. Its President of the European Commission, president was Jean-Claude Juncker, who presided over 27 other commissioners (one from Member state of ...

on 1 November 2014 but announced his resignation on 25 June 2016 following the

referendum A referendum, plebiscite, or ballot measure is a Direct democracy, direct vote by the Constituency, electorate (rather than their Representative democracy, representatives) on a proposal, law, or political issue. A referendum may be either bin ...

in the UK to leave the EU, leaving office on 15 July.

Early life and education

Jonathan Hill was born in Cockfosters, London, on 24 July 1960, the youngest child of Rowland Louis Hill and Paddy Marguerite ''née'' Henwood. He was educated at

Highgate School Highgate School, formally Sir Roger Cholmeley's School at Highgate, is a co-educational, fee-charging, private day school, founded in 1565 in Highgate, London, England. It educates over 1,400 pupils in three sections – Highgate Pre-Preparato ...

, then an independent all-boys school in Highgate village,

North London North London is the northern part of London, England, north of the River Thames and the City of London. It extends from Clerkenwell and Finsbury, on the edge of the City of London financial district, to Greater London's boundary with Hertfordshi ...

, before going to

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any ...

, where he read History, graduating with the degree of Master of Arts (MA).

Career

Hill worked in the Conservative Research Department (1985–86), before becoming a Special Adviser to

at the

Department of Employment The secretary of state for employment was a position in the Cabinet of the United Kingdom. In , it was merged with secretary of state for education to make the secretary of state for education and employment. In , the employment functions were h ...

, Department of Trade and Industry and

Department of Health A health department or health ministry is a part of government which focuses on issues related to the general health of the citizenry. Subnational entities, such as states, counties and cities, often also operate a health department of their o ...

until 1989. After working for Lowe Bell Communications (1989–91), he joined the

Number 10 Policy Unit The Number 10 Policy Unit is a body of policymakers based in 10 Downing Street, providing policy advice directly to the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, British Prime Minister. Originally set up to support Harold Wilson in 1974, it has gone ...

(1991–92) and served as Political Secretary to PM

and

Head A head is the part of an organism which usually includes the ears, brain, forehead, cheeks, chin, eyes, nose, and mouth, each of which aid in various sensory functions such as sight, hearing, smell, and taste. Some very simple ani ...

of the Prime Minister's Political Office (1992–94) during the

Maastricht Treaty The Treaty on European Union, commonly known as the Maastricht Treaty, is the foundation treaty of the European Union (EU). Concluded in 1992 between the then-twelve Member state of the European Union, member states of the European Communities, ...

negotiations. He was appointed CBE in the 1995

New Year Honours The New Year Honours is a part of the British honours system, with New Year's Day, 1 January, being marked by naming new members of orders of chivalry and recipients of other official honours. A number of other Commonwealth realms also mark this ...

List. Subsequently, Hill worked at Bell Pottinger from 1994 until 1998 as a senior consultant, before leaving to become a founding director of Quiller Consultants. Lord-Jonathan-Hill

On 27 May 2010, he was created a

life peer In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the peerage whose titles cannot be inherited, in contrast to hereditary peers. Life peers are appointed by the monarch on the advice of the prime minister. With the exception of the D ...

as Baron Hill of Oareford, of Oareford, in the County of

Somerset Somerset ( , ), Archaism, archaically Somersetshire ( , , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel, Gloucestershire, and Bristol to the north, Wiltshire to the east ...

, and was introduced to the

House of Lords The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the lower house, the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. One of the oldest ext ...

on the same day, taking office as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Schools in the

Department for Education The Department for Education (DfE) is a Departments of the Government of the United Kingdom, ministerial department of the Government of the United Kingdom. It is responsible for child protection, child services, education in England, educati ...

. There are reports (contradicted by Hill) that in July 2012, he attempted, unsuccessfully, to resign as a minister. Lord Hill succeeded Lord Strathclyde as

and Leader of the Conservative Party in the House of Lords in January 2013, and was sworn of the Privy Council.

EU Commissioner, October 2014 - July 2016

In July 2014, Prime Minister

nominated Lord Hill to be UK European Commissioner under

Jean-Claude Juncker Jean-Claude Juncker (; born 9 December 1954) is a Luxembourgish politician who was List of prime ministers of Luxembourg, prime minister of Luxembourg from 1995 to 2013 and president of the European Commission from 2014 to 2019. He also was List ...

, President-elect of the European Commission, aiming for a "top economic portfolio". Cameron's nomination, rather than that of a better-known British politician, was regarded as controversial at that time since Hill had allegedly expressed initial reluctance to serve in

Brussels Brussels, officially the Brussels-Capital Region, (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) is a Communities, regions and language areas of Belgium#Regions, region of Belgium comprising #Municipalit ...

; two former Conservative Party leaders,

Michael Howard Michael Howard, Baron Howard of Lympne (born Michael Hecht; 7 July 1941) is a British politician who was Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party and Leader of the Opposition (United Kingdom), Leader of the Opposi ...

and

William Hague William Jefferson Hague, Baron Hague of Richmond (born 26 March 1961) is a British politician and life peer who was Leader of the Conservative Party and Leader of the Opposition from 1997 to 2001 and Deputy Leader from 2005 to 2010. He was th ...

, had both reportedly turned down this opportunity and it appeared David Cameron was keen to avoid triggering a potentially difficult by-election by nominating any other sitting Conservative MP. Juncker stated after his election that female and high-profile candidates would be among his preferred choices, prompting speculation by some that Cameron's nomination – of a virtually unknown male in European political circles, despite his competence – to be a protest against Juncker whose election he had opposed. On 10 September 2014 Lord Hill was announced as EU Commissioner-designate for the Financial Stability, Financial Services and Capital Markets Union portfolio in the forthcoming Juncker Commission. This newly created Directorate-General is tasked with assimilating existing EU expertise as well as responsibility for ensuring that the European Commission remains vigilant over the banking and

financial sector Financial services are economic services tied to finance provided by financial institutions. Financial services encompass a broad range of service sector activities, especially as concerns financial management and consumer finance. The financ ...

s and remains pro-active in implementing new supervisory and regulatory rules accordingly, save overseeing pay in the financial sector where Lord Hill and Elżbieta Bieńkowska will share joint responsibility. He was one of four appointees who allegedly "struggled to impress" at their initial confirmation hearings before the

European Parliament The European Parliament (EP) is one of the two legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it ...

, and was required to appear for a second hearing — leading some hostile

MEPs A member of the European Parliament (MEP) is a person who has been elected to serve as a popular representative in the European Parliament. When the European Parliament (then known as the Common Assembly of the European Coal and Steel Comm ...

to start speculating that his appointment could be revoked in a reshuffle. With some "diplomatic smoothing of the way by Juncker", Hill it is said "managed" to give satisfactory answers as to the UK's position regarding European banking union. Lord Hill secured the endorsement of sceptical

at his second EU hearing in Brussels. Lord Hill announced his resignation from his post of European Commissioner on 25 June 2016, to take effect on 15 July 2016, following the result of the referendum on the UK's membership of the European Union.

Ditchley Foundation

Hill is the

chairperson The chair, also chairman, chairwoman, or chairperson, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a Board of directors, board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by ...

of the Ditchley Foundation, an organisation established to promote

Atlanticism Atlanticism, also known as Transatlanticism or North Atlanticism, is the ideology which advocates a close alliance between nations in Northern America (the United States and Canada) and in Europe on political, economic, and defense issues. The te ...

in 1958.

Personal life

In 1988 Hill married Alexandra Jane, daughter of

Major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

John Nettelfield , a British Army officer who served with distinction in the

Royal Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

; Lord and Lady Hill have a son and two daughters. He holds shareholdings in Huntsworth plc, an international public relations company. In January 2013, ''The Independent'' stated he reportedly held at least £50,000+ worth of shares in the company which bought Quiller in 2006 for £5.9m, headed by Conservative parliamentarian Lord Chadlington.

Bibliography

*''Too Close to Call: John Major, Power and Politics in No.10''; by Sarah Hogg & Jonathan Hill, ''Little Brown'' (1995),

Honours

Life Peer In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the peerage whose titles cannot be inherited, in contrast to hereditary peers. Life peers are appointed by the monarch on the advice of the prime minister. With the exception of the D ...

as Baron Hill of Oareford, of Oareford, in the County of Somerset (''created'' 27 May 2010) * CBE (1995)

References

External links

Debrett's People of Today

www.dodspeople.com

www.elections2014.eu
, - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Hill, Jonathan 1960 births Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge British businesspeople British European commissioners British public relations people British special advisers Department for Education Chancellors of the Duchy of Lancaster Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Conservative Party (UK) life peers Leaders of the House of Lords Living people Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom People educated at Highgate School Politicians from the London Borough of Barnet Politicians from the London Borough of Enfield European commissioners (2014–2019) Life peers created by Elizabeth II