This authoritative history of the Treasury provides a new perspective on public policy-making in the twentieth century as it explores the role and functions of the Chancellor of the Exchequer and the consequent implications for the changing role of the Treasury.

As the central department in British government, the Treasury plays a key role in decisions on public expenditure, and on raising taxes and loans. Professor Peden traces the development of the Treasury's responsibility for managing the national economy and looks at how it became increasingly involved in international relations from the time of the First World War. In further examining the relations between ministers and their official advisers, this history explores the growing influence of economists in Whitehall.