Ruth Kelly was appointed Financial Secretary on 29 May 2002.

She was previously the Economic Secretary to the Treasury.

Member for Bolton West since 1 May 1997, this is her second ministerial position.

Ruth was previously the Parliamentary Private Secretary to Nick Brown at the Ministry for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (since 1998). She was a member of the Treasury Select Committee between 1997 and 1998.

Educated at Queen's College, Oxford, and with an MSc in Economics from the London School of Economics, Ruth has also worked at the Bank of England in the Inflation Report Division (1994-1996) and was Economics Writer on the Guardian newspaper (1990-1994).

Ruth is married with three daughters and a son.