UK names Sam Beckett as new Treasury chief economic adviser

Britain has appointed long-time civil servant Sam Beckett as the new chief economic adviser to the Treasury, the finance ministry said on Wednesday. Beckett had previously held senior roles at the Office for National Statistics and the UK Statistics Authority, a regulator.

Britain has appointed long-time civil servant Sam Beckett as the new chief economic adviser to the Treasury, the finance ministry said on Wednesday.

Beckett had previously held senior roles at the Office for National Statistics and the UK Statistics Authority, a regulator. She replaces Clare Lombardelli, the new chief economist of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.

"(Beckett's) economic expertise and leadership in a range of government departments will be indispensable," finance minister Jeremy Hunt said in the statement. As chief economic adviser, Beckett is likely follow Lombardelli as the Treasury's representative to observe - but not participate in - the Bank of England's monetary policy decisions.