Gavin Barwell served as Downing Street Chief of Staff from June 2017 to July 2019 during one of the most turbulent periods in British political history. As the Prime Minister’s most senior political adviser, he was intimately involved in the negotiation of Theresa May’s Brexit deal, as well as the development of key domestic policies like the UK’s commitment to net zero carbon emissions by 2050 and foreign policy (e.g. the UK response to the attempted murder of Sergei Skripal by the Russian state).
Prior to his appointment as Chief of Staff, he was the Member of Parliament for Croydon Central from May 2010 until June 2017 and a Government Minister from October 2013 until June 2017 (initially a Whip and then Minister of State for Housing & Planning and Minister for London).
Prior to his election to Parliament, he was the Chief Operating Officer of the Conservative Party and served as a local councillor in his home town of Croydon.
In October 2019, he was appointed to the House of Lords.
Taken together, these roles have given him an unparalleled insight into British politics from grassroots campaigning in a marginal seat through party headquarters, local government, Parliament and Ministerial office to 10 Downing Street, as well as contacts in a number of foreign governments and the EU institutions.
He now runs NorthStar, a business he co-founded which provides advice to businesses on UK and geopolitics.
He is also a non-executive director of Clarion Housing Group, the largest housing association in the country; and a member of the Advisory Board of the Work Foundation, the leading think tank focused on improving the quality of work in the UK.
He is a graduate of Trinity College, Cambridge with a BA in Natural Sciences.
He is 52 years old and married with three children.
