Hill,a former political lobbyist and PR consultant,was special adviser to Cabinet Minister Kenneth Clarke and an adviser to the Conservative Prime Minister John Major before being appointed a Government Minister in 2010. Prime Minister David Cameron 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 on 1 November 2014 but announced his resignation on 25 June 2016 following the referendum in the UK to leave the EU,leaving office on 15 July.[1][2][3]
In July 2014,Prime Minister David Cameron nominated Lord Hill to be UK European Commissioner under Jean-Claude Juncker,President-elect of the European Commission,aiming for a "top economic portfolio".[15] 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;two former Conservative Party leaders,Michael Howard and William Hague,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.[16] Juncker stated after his election that female and high-profile candidates would be among his preferred choices,[17] 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.[18]
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 sectors and remains pro-active in implementing new supervisory and regulatory rules accordingly,[19] save overseeing pay in the financial sector where Lord Hill and Elżbieta Bieńkowska will share joint responsibility.[20] He was one of four appointees who allegedly "struggled to impress" at their initial confirmation hearings before the European Parliament,[21] and was required to appear for a second hearing[22] —leading some hostile MEPs to start speculating that his appointment could be revoked in a reshuffle.[23] 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.[24][25][26]
Lord Hill secured the endorsement of sceptical MEPs at his second EU hearing in Brussels.[27]
In 1988 Hill married Alexandra Jane,[citation needed] daughter of Major John Nettelfield MC,a British Army officer who served with distinction in the Royal Artillery during World War II;[29] Lord and Lady Hill have a son and two daughters.
He holds shareholdings in Huntsworth plc,an international public relations company.[30][31] 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,[32] headed by Conservative parliamentarianLord Chadlington.
Bibliography
Too Close to Call:John Major,Power and Politics in No.10;by Sarah Hogg &Jonathan Hill,Little Brown (1995), ISBN0-316-87716-6
Honours
Life Peer as Baron Hill of Oareford, of Oareford, in the County of Somerset (created 27 May 2010)
↑ Spiegel, Peter; Oliver, Christian (2 October 2014). "Calls for reshuffle of European Commission grow louder". Financial Times. Retrieved 2 October 2014. Asked for his position on Eurobonds, the jointly backed Eurozone debt instruments that were a hugely divisive issue during the sovereign debt crisis, Lord Hill disarmingly said: 'I have no particularly informed view on the subject'. The sight of Werner Langen, the senior German centre-right MEP who asked the eurobond question, shaking his head in disbelief was one of the few worrying signs for the would-be commissioner.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
