Shriti Vadera

Shriti Vadera

This article is part of the Mining and Metals project of Spinwatch

Baroness Shriti Vadera is a pro-industry and privatisation politician and former investment banker. Until September 2009, she was a government minister jointly for the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and the Cabinet Office. She is a non-executive director of mining giant BHP Billiton and pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca.

Banking background

Vadera was Executive Director at Warburg Dillon Read, where she worked on banking and privatisation teams playing a role in the partial privatisation of South African Telecom. She is an expert on Public-Private Partnership (PPP) deals.

Gordon Brown's 'representative on earth'

Following 15 years with Warburg she spent 10 years in Gordon Brown's office including as Minister for Overseas Development at the Department for International Development from June until December 2007 and subsequently a minister for the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (then the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform) as well as a minister for the Cabinet Office and became a close friend and advisor of his, known as 'Gordon Brown's representative on earth'.

As Vadera was not a member of either of the Houses of Parliament, she was created a life peer on 11 July 2007 as Baroness Vadera.The Sunday Times reported that the Cabinet Secretary "flatly refus[ed] to allow her to cross the threshold of No 10 as policy enforcer" and "no Permanent Secretary could stand her" - although the Cabinet Secretary denied making these comments.

She was the Treasury's top negotiator in the PPP scheme to part-privatise the London tube network, telling London transport commissioner Bob Kiley she 'could not sanction public control of the tube under any circumstances' on February 12th 2001. She was also a key architect in the 2008 bank bailout.

The London Evening Standard stated she the most powerful person in Gordon Brown's cabinet, in reality 'the Prime Minister's principal fixer' and 'has three desks - in the Business Department, Cabinet Office and Number 10'.

According to a Guardian report in which she was 'nominated' to be a future Governor of the Bank of England by (BBC journalist and Social Market Foundation advisor) Evan Davis:

Shriti Vadera, a publicity-shy former banker, is one of the key figures behind the scenes in the Treasury, where she has been central to the development of public-private partnerships. She's the main point of contact between the Treasury and the City, and has impressed those she has dealt with. "She combines financial expertise and political common sense," says Evan Davis. "Her appointment would be greeted with gushing enthusiasm everywhere, from City wine bars to high-street charity shops - she is on Oxfam's council of trustees."

Life after government

Vadera stepped down as business minister in September 2009 to take up a new role advising the G20 from Downing Street on behalf of South Korea, which held the G20 chair.

2010 roles

According to the Advisory Committee on Business Appointments she took up a part-time consultancy role with the Dubai government shortly after April 2010. ACOBA saw "no reason why she should not accept consultancy work with the Government/Ruler of Dubai, subject to the conditions that, for one year from her last day in Ministerial office, she should refrain from becoming involved in any direct negotiations with HM Government or the Coordination Committee of banks for Dubai World which is dominated by the main banks operating in the UK - RBS, Lloyds, Standard Chartered, HSBC, and Barclays - and that for 2 years from her last day in office she should not become personally involved in lobbying the UK Government".

In June 2010 she was appointed to provide financial and strategic advice to investment company Temasek Holdings. ACOBA saw "no reason why she should not accept the appointment subject to the condition that, for 2 years from her last day in office, she should not become personally involved in lobbying the UK Government".

In December 2010 she notified ACOBA she was to be an independent adviser, providing financial and strategic advice, and was told "having left office over a year ago the Committee sees no reason why she should not continue to provide advice to further clients, in addition to the two commissions set out above, on the condition that for 2 years from her last day in office she should not become personally involved in lobbying the UK Government".

In December 2010 Vadera was appointed a non-executive director of mining giant BHP Billiton and Big Pharma company AstraZeneca. ACOBA saw "no reason why she should not accept the appointment forthwith, subject to the condition that, for 2 years from her last day in office, she should not become personally involved in lobbying the UK Government".

Over £1million of post-government earnings

Vadea is also now chairperson of Santander UK. In May 2016, the Daily Mail estimated that since leaving government Vadera's various City roles had earned her a total of more than UK£1 million. Her spokesperson justified her lucrative post-government roles, saying that:

'Shriti was an international career banker for 14 years before joining the Treasury as a specialist adviser for eight years, and then as a minister for two years. Her roles since leaving government are based on her wide and international financial experience.'

Affiliations

• Oxfam (five years as a trustee 2000-2005)
• advisor to Gordon Brown
• AstraZeneca board member since 2010
• BHP Billiton board member since 2010
• Temasek Holdings - Financial and strategic advisor since June 2010