Chris Philp

Chris Philp
Born	Christopher Ian Brian Mynott Philp (1976-07-06) July 6, 1976 West Wickham, London, England
Occupation	Politician
Years active	2015–present
Known for	Member of Parliament for Croydon South since 2015; Shadow Home Secretary since 2024; former Minister of State for Crime, Policing and Fire; former Chief Secretary to the Treasury

Christopher Ian Brian Mynott Philp (born 6 July 1976) is a UK politician currently holding the position of Shadow Home Secretary since November 2024. Between October 2022 and July 2024, he was the Minister of State for Crime, Policing and Fire. In 2022, during Liz Truss's brief premiership, he served in her cabinet initially as Chief Secretary to the Treasury, followed by roles as Minister for the Cabinet Office and Paymaster General. A member of the Conservative Party, he has been the Member of Parliament for Croydon South since 2015.

Philp was appointed Parliamentary Private Secretary to Chancellor Sajid Javid in August 2019. The next month, Prime Minister Boris Johnson named him Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the Ministry of Justice, with his portfolio transferring to the Home Office in February 2020. Additionally, he briefly held the position of Minister for London from December 2019 until February 2020. During the cabinet reshuffle in September 2021, he took on the role of Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Tech and the Digital Economy, but resigned amid the government turmoil in July 2022.

Following Boris Johnson’s resignation, Philp supported Liz Truss’s campaign for Conservative Party leadership. When she became Prime Minister, he was appointed to her cabinet as Chief Secretary to the Treasury in September 2022. After Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng was dismissed due to backlash over the mini-budget, Philp was reassigned to serve as Minister for the Cabinet Office and Paymaster General in October 2022. Under Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, he held the role of Minister of State at the Home Office until the Conservative administration concluded in July 2024.

In opposition, Philp acted as Shadow Leader of the House of Commons within Sunak’s caretaker Shadow Cabinet before ascending to Shadow Home Secretary in November 2024 following Kemi Badenoch’s rise to Conservative Party leader and Leader of the Opposition.

Early life and education

Born in West Wickham, London, Christopher Philp attended St Olave's Grammar School located in Orpington, within the London Borough of Bromley. He pursued physics at University College, Oxford, completing his degree in 1997. In 1996, while a student at Oxford, he served as editor of the university’s student newspaper, Cherwell. That same year, as a second-year student, Philp faced suspension and a fine from the Oxford Union after recording a contentious speech by OJ Simpson and distributing copies to media outlets.

Early career

Prior to his political career, Philp worked at McKinsey & Company. In 2000, he co-founded Blueheath Holdings, a distribution firm. Blueheath was publicly listed on the AIM before being taken over by Booker Group through a reverse takeover in 2007, valuing Booker at £375 million.

In recognition of his entrepreneurial efforts, Philp received London's Emerging Entrepreneur of the Year award from both Ernst & Young and The Times in 2003. Together with future Conservative MP Sam Gyimah, he established Clearstone Training and Recruitment Limited, which specialized in Heavy Goods Vehicle (HGV) training. He also founded Pluto Finance, a property development lender, and Moreof Silverstone. Additionally, Philp created The Next Big Thing charity, which was formally closed while solvent in 2017.

From 2004 to 2005, Philp chaired the Conservative think tank known as the Bow Group. In May 2006, he secured a council seat representing Gospel Oak ward in Camden with a swing exceeding 10%, marking the first Conservative victory there in over two decades. He chose not to seek re-election in 2010.

Philp co-wrote Conservative Revival: Blueprint for a Better Britain alongside ten other Conservative MPs or candidates in their thirties; this work was published through the Bow Group with a foreword by then-Opposition Leader David Cameron. He also authored Work for the Dole: A proposal to fix welfare dependency, released by The Taxpayers' Alliance in 2013, promoting compulsory community service and training linked to benefit receipt.

Parliamentary candidate

During the 2010 general election, Philp contested the Hampstead and Kilburn seat. He secured second place with 32.7% of the votes, narrowly trailing the sitting Labour MP Glenda Jackson by just 42 votes, marking the slimmest margin of victory in the House of Commons.

Cameron government

Philp was chosen as the Conservative candidate for Croydon South in November 2013. At the 2015 general election, he won the seat with 54.5% of the vote, achieving a majority of 17,140.

Shortly after his election, Philp became the first new Conservative MP from the 2015 intake to be elected by fellow MPs to the influential Treasury Select Committee.

A proponent of selective grammar school education, Philp advocated in October 2015 for establishing a satellite grammar school within his constituency as a means to circumvent limitations on new selective institutions and local policies favoring non-selective schools.

In May 2016, during discussions on the Government's Starter Homes Initiative, Philp encountered criticism from housing organizations for allegedly underestimating the difficulties first-time buyers face when saving for deposits. He responded by highlighting that prospective buyers often have approximately a decade to accumulate savings.

Philp was opposed to Brexit prior to the 2016 referendum.

He has been an outspoken critic of Govia Thameslink Railway’s operation of Southern Rail, calling for government intervention to assume control of the franchise and promote cross-party collaboration to resolve conflicts with the RMT Union. Additionally, Philp introduced a Private Member's Bill aimed at prohibiting "unreasonable" strikes affecting essential public services such as rail transport.

May government

At the unexpected 2017 general election, Philp retained his seat as MP for Croydon South, though his vote share dipped slightly to 54.4%, with a reduced majority of 11,406. Subsequent to this election, he was appointed Parliamentary Private Secretary (PPS) to ministers within HM Treasury.

On 22 January 2018, Philp took on the role of PPS to Sajid Javid, who was then Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government. Between December 2018 and May 2019, he held the position of Conservative Party Vice Chairman responsible for Policy.

In August 2019, Philp resumed duties as PPS to Sajid Javid following Javid’s appointment as Chancellor of the Exchequer. Philp had supported Javid during the 2019 Conservative Party leadership contest.

Johnson government

Philp was appointed as a Parliamentary Under Secretary at the Ministry of Justice in September 2019. In that year’s general election, he was re-elected with an increased majority of 12,339 and a vote share of 52.2%.

Afterward, Philp served as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Immigration Compliance and Courts. In September 2021, he succeeded Matt Warman as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Digital Infrastructure.

On 7 July 2022, amid a wave of ministerial resignations during the July 2022 United Kingdom government crisis, Philp stepped down from his government role, citing his opposition to Boris Johnson’s leadership.

Truss administration

During Liz Truss's tenure, Philp was appointed Chief Secretary to the Treasury and became a member of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom. After Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng unveiled the contentious 'mini-budget' on 23 September 2022, Philp prematurely celebrated a surge in the pound via Twitter. However, sterling soon plummeted to its lowest level against the dollar in 37 years, prompting significant backlash and the deletion of his post.

At the Conservative party conference in October, Philp rated the mini-budget as "9.5 out of 10" and refuted allegations that it mainly advantaged wealthy individuals, despite previously acknowledging such media critiques.

On 14 October, Truss dismissed both Kwarteng and Philp from their Treasury roles after only 38 days. Philp was reassigned as Minister for the Cabinet Office and Paymaster General—positions that had been held by his replacement, Edward Argar.

Sunak administration

Following Rishi Sunak's appointment as Prime Minister on 25 October 2022, Philp exited the Cabinet and took on the role of Minister of State for Crime, Policing and Fire at the Home Office, exchanging positions with Jeremy Quin. He maintained this role until the Conservative Party’s loss in the 2024 general election.

In September 2023, it was revealed that Philp was part of a social media group known for frequently endorsing criminal activities and vandalism targeting public assets, especially ULEZ cameras.

In 2024, Philp opposed plans to construct a small apartment block on a plot designated for a single-family home in Purley, siding with local residents. He argued that new housing developments should be concentrated in Croydon town centre, central London, and brownfield areas—even though the site in question was categorized as brownfield—an inconsistency noted by commentators.

On a Question Time episode aired on 25 April 2024, Philp addressed the government's scheme to relocate migrants to Rwanda. When challenged, he appeared to confuse Rwanda with the Democratic Republic of the Congo, later claiming that the question was rhetorical due to difficulty hearing it.

In opposition

Philp retained his parliamentary seat in the 2024 United Kingdom general election, albeit with a reduced majority of 2,313 votes compared to his previous margin of 12,339. Following the Conservative Party’s defeat and establishment of the Starmer ministry, he was appointed Shadow Leader of the House of Commons within Rishi Sunak’s caretaker Shadow Cabinet.

On 5 November, newly elected Leader of the Opposition, Kemi Badenoch, named Philp as Shadow Home Secretary.

After Reform UK suspended MP Rupert Lowe, Philp publicly defended Lowe, criticizing Nigel Farage and Reform UK for their treatment of him and extended an invitation for Lowe to join his party.

Personal life

Philp married Elizabeth in 2009. Their premature twins were born in April 2013 and required prolonged intensive care. His father Brian stood as a UKIP candidate for Orpington during the 2017 general election.

In June 2024, Elizabeth Philp faced legal action over accusations of corporate espionage, allegedly using confidential information from her former employer to launch a competing business. When questioned at a local hustings event, Philp acknowledged that legal proceedings were ongoing but declined to confirm or deny any involvement in the company.