Gordon Brown


Gordon Brown

A British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2007 to 2010. A historian and political scientist by training, he was elected to Parliament in 1983. In 1997, he became Chancellor of the Exchequer. As Chancellor, he gave the Bank of England control of monetary policy independent of government influence and adjusted tax rates according to inflation rather than earnings. As Prime Minister, he bailed out British banks during the late 2000s recession. The recession resulted in a significant increase in Britain's national debt.