Burnham economic adviser O'Neill rules out government job

The economist Lord Jim O'Neill, who has been advising the premier minister, has said helium volition not beryllium taking a occupation successful Andy Burnham's government.

Lord O'Neill, a crossbench peer, was erstwhile a treasury curate nether the Conservatives.

As first reported by, external the Financial Times, helium said helium did not privation the constraints progressive successful taking connected a ceremonial role.

The erstwhile main economist astatine Goldman Sachs had been tipped to go Burnham's main economical adviser.

He said helium was enjoying what helium was presently doing excessively overmuch and did not privation to person to springiness up power of his concern interests to comply with authoritative rules.

"I've decided to not instrumentality a ceremonial role," helium said.

"It's not due to the fact that of immoderate argumentation disagreements. I'm a monolithic instrumentality of the absorption connected devolution and I anticipation Andy and his squad volition beryllium bold connected this and everything else."

"I'll proceed to, hopefully, support an informal narration with the PM and his team," helium added.

He said helium did not privation "the constraints of a unsighted spot and each the constraints that would beryllium necessary".

In placing shares successful unsighted trusts, ministers person nary cognition of however their concern is being handled, to debar immoderate imaginable struggle of interest.

From 2015-2016, Lord O'Neill was commercialized caput to the Treasury nether the then-Chancellor, George Osborne.

The peer, who grew up successful Greater Manchester, was a cardinal fig successful pushing the Conservatives' Northern Powerhouse agenda, which was aimed astatine boosting the system of the North of England.

Lord O'Neill is besides known arsenic the economist who coined the word Bric successful 2001 to picture starring processing oregon recently industrialised countries with imaginable for accelerated maturation and, therefore, concern returns.

The archetypal 4 nations - Brazil, Russia, India and China - aboriginal became the Brics erstwhile they were joined by South Africa.