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Torsten Bell
British politician From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Torsten Henricson Bell (born September 1982) is a Labour politician, economist, author, and newspaper columnist, serving as Member of Parliament (MP) for Swansea West since 2024.[4] He was appointed as Parliamentary Secretary for the Treasury and Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Pensions in January 2025.[5]
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Previously he was the chief executive of the Resolution Foundation, an economic thinktank, from 2015 to 2024.[6]
He was appointed to the Resolution Foundation in 2015 after having served as Ed Miliband's Director of policy, and as a Treasury civil servant who became special adviser to Alistair Darling during the 2007–2008 financial crisis.[6]
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Early life and education
Born in London to an English father and Swedish mother, Bell was educated at the The Judd School in Tonbridge going on to graduate in philosophy, politics and economics at Mansfield College, Oxford.[7][8] At Oxford, he was editor of the student newspaper Cherwell.[9]
Early career
Since 2017, he has written a column in The Observer named Hidden Gems from the World of Research.[10]
Bell writes regularly about poverty and inequality in the United Kingdom,[11] about the North–South divide in England and the levelling-up policy of the British government.[12] He described the September 2022 United Kingdom mini-budget as "the biggest unforced economic policy error of my lifetime."[13]
Bell has been associated with the coordination of policy developments for the Labour Party.[14] He has received recognition across various factions within the party for his attention to detail.[15]
In November 2022, Bell was appointed Honorary Professor at the UCL Policy Lab.[16]
In September 2023, Bell was named as the tenth most powerful left-wing figure in the UK by the New Statesman.[17]
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Parliamentary career
In May 2024, Bell was selected as the Labour Party candidate for the seat of Swansea West in the 2024 general election, which raised some criticism from local members for his having "no connection" to the area and "no Welsh connection".[18] Despite this, in July 2024, Bell was elected as the Member of Parliament for the Swansea West constituency, with 41.4% share of the vote, and a majority of 8,515.[4]
From July 2024 to January 2025, Bell was Parliamentary Private Secretary to the Cabinet Office.[19] Thereafter he was appointed Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Pensions, replacing Emma Reynolds, who was promoted following the resignation of Tulip Siddiq.[20][21]
Personal life
Bell's twin brother, Olaf, is a civil servant.[22]
Works
- Bell, Torsten (13 June 2024). Great Britain? How We Get Our Future Back. Vintage. ISBN 9781529932409.
References
External links
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