Philip Hammond Keynote Speaker

Philip Hammond is a keynote speaker who was the former Chancellor of the Exchequer in the British Government. He was a UK Cabinet Minister and member of the British Government for almost a decade. He has held two of the four Great Offices of State, and lead four departments over nine years in Government. He is one of only three people to serve continuously in the UK cabinet from 2010 to 2019, serving under Prime Ministers David Cameron and Theresa May.  Philip Hammond is an authoritative speaker on economics and politics.

Hammond took over the role of Chancellor of the Exchequer soon after the 2016 Brexit Referendum at a time of unprecedented uncertainty for the economy..

He is strongly of the view that the best way to deliver the referendum result would be through negotiating a deal with the European Union and the UK that keeps the two close economically, and that the UK electorate did not vote to become poorer or less secure. He maintained this position whilst a minister and has continued to voice his opinions since leaving. He has been particularly vocal about the need to protect London’s global financial markets and the attractiveness of the city as a place to do business.

Philip Hammond has had a strong eye on the challenges faced by developed economies, specifically: the technological revolution and how it is already transforming the way we work and live our lives; climate change and how to harness the market economy to deliver decarbonisation; demographic shifts and the challenges of an ageing population in the UK and across the world, as well as the the challenge of increasing productivity.

Through his roles as Chancellor and as Foreign Secretary, Hammond has considerable experience of working with China, and clear views about how to manage the integration of China as a major economic and strategic power into the global system. He also has strong connections in the Gulf region,

During his tenure as Defence, Hammond also developed close relationship with counterparts in the US and other allies counterparts, both civilian and military, and visited Afghanistan several times during his tenure. He retains a close interest in the strategic challenges facing the Western Alliance and then interrelationship between economic and strategic influences.

Hammond grew up in Essex, England, and studied Philosophy, Politics and Economics at University College Oxford. Before entering Parliament in 1997, he ran a number of successful businesses. He remains the Member of Parliament for the Surrey constituency of Runnymede and Weybridge.