James Purnell

James Mark Dakin Purnell (born 2 March 1970) is a British politician who has served as Downing Street Chief of Staff since July 2026. A former member of the Labour Party, he previously served as the Member of Parliament for Stalybridge and Hyde from 2001 to 2010, during which time he served as Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport from 2007 to 2008 and Secretary of State for Work and Pensions from 2008 to 2009. He resigned from the Government on 4 June 2009, criticising the leadership of prime minister Gordon Brown. After leaving parliament, Purnell was chair of the Institute for Public Policy Research from 2010 to 2012 before joining the BBC as Director of Strategy and Digital from 2013 to 2016 and Director of Radio and Education from 2016 to 2020. In 2020 he was appointed vice-chancellor of University of the Arts London; he left this post in 2024 to become CEO of Flint, a British international advisory business.