19 Facts About Kitty Ussher

Katharine Anne Ussher was born on 18 March 1971 and is a British economist, public policy research professional and former politician.

Kitty Ussher was previously a Labour Party MP and Treasury minister, and later Chief Executive of the Demos think tank.

Kitty Ussher resigned from her ministerial role in 2009 following her involvement in the United Kingdom parliamentary expenses scandal in which it was reported she had taken action on the advice of her accountants to reduce her capital gains tax liability.

Kitty Ussher did not stand at the 2010 election, citing the desire for a more normal family life while her children were young.

Kitty Ussher is the daughter of an Anglo-Irish lawyer father and a headmistress mother whose brother is Conservative MP, Peter Bottomley.

Kitty Ussher is distantly descended from the family of Archbishop James Ussher.

Kitty Ussher was educated on a free place at the independent St Paul's Girls' School; she subsequently attended Balliol College, Oxford, where she read PPE, and Birkbeck College, London, where she took an MSc in Economics.

Kitty Ussher was elected as the member of Parliament for Burnley at the 2005 general election, having been selected through an All-Women Shortlist as the constituency's Labour candidate.

From 2005 to 2006, Kitty Ussher was a member of the Public Accounts Committee.

Kitty Ussher was Parliamentary Private Secretary to Margaret Hodge, the Minister of State at the Department of Trade and Industry, until 29 June 2007.

Kitty Ussher chaired the Treasury Islamic Finance Group, leading to the issuance of the first sukuk government bond, co-chaired with Hector Sants the official High-Level Working Group on the efficiency of the UK capital-raising process, and co-chaired with Sir Michael Snyder the High-Level Working Group on the professional services sector.

Kitty Ussher developed the policy leading to the Dormant Bank and Building Society Accounts Act 2008 that redistributes unclaimed banking assets to community use, and the Savings Gateway Act 2009 that provides financial incentives to poorer people to save.

Kitty Ussher became responsible for the government's review of housing benefit policy and a review of the social fund, as well as the Child Support Agency and welfare policy on lone parents.

Kitty Ussher made London her permanent home in April 2009, moving to Brixton, so she could send her children to school in Westminster.

Kitty Ussher denied any abuse of the allowances system of the House of Commons.

In May 2010, after leaving Parliament, Kitty Ussher became the new Chief Executive of Demos, remaining in that post until 2012.

Kitty Ussher then became a research fellow of the Smith Institute, an associate at the Centre for London, a member of TheCityUK's Independent Economists' Panel, and a co founder of Labour in the City.

Kitty Ussher has written pamphlets for the Fabian Society, the Social Market Foundation and Policy Network and for the Financial Times.

In September 2021, Kitty Ussher was appointed chief economist at the Institute of Directors.