Archive

Treasury Private Office papers

In 2012 www.margaretthatcher.org uncovered through an FOI request the existence of a vast cache of secret papers stored at H.M. Treasury, some 4,850 files from the Private Office of successive Chancellors (and Chief Secretaries) between 1979 and 1997.

The files contain the most politically sensitive documents from the very top of the Treasury, the small circle of Ministers, Special Advisers and Private Secretaries, which were stored, when in use, only a few doors from the Chancellor's room for convenience and security. Their like is rarely found at the National Archives in Kew. These documents are of deep historical interest, an intact Private Office collection in scale and importance exceeded only by that from No.10 itself, relied on by Treasury ministers when writing their memoirs. It is an un-looted tomb in Whitehall's Valley of the Kings - the Palace accountant's rather than the Pharaoh's, but well worth the ticket.

When it first revealed the existence of the files the Treasury stated that it intended to destroy the whole lot, waiting politely till the various Chancellors died off. It was claimed, quite mistakenly, that the contents of these files are either ephemeral or copied elsewhere, and so should not be considered part of "the definitive policy record" maintained by its various divisions for archiving at Kew.

Later, and following representations, officials denied that destruction was ever intended. The first section, covering the Chancellorship of Sir Geoffrey Howe, 1979-83, was released at TNA in 2016; the files have been digitised and uploaded to the list below. The bulk of Nigel Lawson's files, 1983-89, were released at TNA in early 2018 and have also been digitised; they are being uploaded progressively and many are now available on this page. The spreadsheet giving the full list 1979-97 can be downloaded below.

Although some of the files relate to 1979 and 1980, the filing system glimpsed here only got into full operation in 1981, so earlier records are something of a legacy from what went before and are significantly fewer.

The Treasury has also released Nick Ridley's surviving Private Office files as Financial Secretary to the Treasury. These are diferent in form to the Chancellor's files, consisting largely of photocopies of minutes and meetings records relating to directly to Ridley with very little incoming correspondence. They are not listed in the spreadsheet already mentioned, so must derive from the 'unstructured' files already referred to. They are in rough chronological order - a sort of day file.

How to use this page?

Below are links to the downloadable files in numerical order. The original file names have been modified to convey content more readily.

An average file has around 100 pages.

Some of these downloads are very big, as large as 50MB, though most are in the range 1-10MB.

Where documents within a file have been selected for the site database, they can easily be viewed by clicking the file name link.

Selected documents in site database

Documents from the files selected for the site database can be read here. Progressively more will be uploaded over time.

Showing items 26 - 50 of 1283

Per page:
File name File title Begins Ends Release date Any docs withheld? Classification Pages
T639/44 Europe (Visit of President & Vice President of European Investment Bank, May 1981 - briefing) Begins: 1981 Apr 10 Ends: 1981 May 5 Date of release: 2012 Classification: Confidential Pages: 27
T639/45 Monetary policy (Chancellor's appearance before Treasury Select Committee, 25 Mar 1981 - briefing) Begins: 1981 Mar 4 Ends: 1981 Mar 21 Date of release: 2012 Classification: Confidential Pages: 236
T639/46 Monetary policy (Chancellor's appearance before Treasury Select Committee, 25 Mar 1981 - briefing) Begins: 1981 Mar 23 Ends: 1981 Mar 25 Date of release: 2012 Classification: Confidential Pages: 227
T639/47 Monetary policy (Chancellor's Mais Lecture, May 1981 - briefing, notes, drafts) Begins: 1981 Jan 14 Ends: 1981 May 7 Date of release: 2012 Classification: Unclassified Pages: 246
T639/48 Monetary policy (Chancellor's Mais Lecture, May 1981 - drafts, text, earlier lectures) Begins: 1981 May 8 Ends: 1981 May 12 Date of release: 2012 Classification: Unclassified Pages: 94
T639/18 Europe (ECOFIN, Oct 1980 - briefing, circulated papers) Begins: 1980 Jan 24 Ends: 1980 Oct 17 Date of release: 2012 Classification: Confidential Pages: 121
T639/49 Europe (European Council [Luxembourg], Jun 1981 - briefing) Begins: 1981 Jun 16 Ends: 1981 Jun 26 Date of release: 2012 Classification: Confidential Pages: 269
T639/50 Europe (Chancellor's visit to The Hague, Jun 1981 - speech, drafting) Begins: 1981 May 21 Ends: 1981 Jun 3 Date of release: 2012 Classification: Confidential Pages: 125
T639/51 Europe (ECOFIN, Jul 1981 - full briefing, circulated papers) Begins: 1981 Jun 17 Ends: 1981 Jul 3 Date of release: 2012 Classification: Confidential Pages: 107
T639/52 Europe (Informal ECOFIN [Breda], Apr 1981 - briefing; items on EC budget) Begins: 1981 Jan 23 Ends: 1981 Apr 2 Date of release: 2012 Classification: Confidential Pages: 119
T639/53 Europe (Chancellor's visit to Frankfurt to meet West German Finance Minister, Jul 1981 - briefing, records of conversation) Begins: 1981 Jul 7 Ends: 1981 Jul 20 Date of release: 2012 Classification: Confidential Pages: 49
T639/54 International (Meeting of G5 finance ministers & central bank governors in London, Apr 1981 - arrangements, briefing) Begins: 1981 Mar 31 Ends: 1981 Apr 10 Date of release: 2012 Classification: Confidential Pages: 56
T639/55 International (Visit of Mexican Finance Minister, Apr 1981 - briefing, record of conversation) Begins: 1980 Jul 30 Ends: 1981 Apr 14 Date of release: 2012 Classification: Confidential Pages: 66
T639/56 Europe (Chancellor's meeting with Brussels-based foreign journalists, Jul 1981 - briefing) Begins: 1981 Jul 13 Ends: 1981 Jul 16 Date of release: 2012 Classification: Unclassified Pages: 63
T639/57 Budget (Representations on tax relief, etc, policy presentation, backbench views, 1980-81 - correspondence, minutes, meeting records) Part A Begins: 1980 Oct 24 Ends: 1981 Feb 2 Date of release: 2012 Classification: Confidential Pages: 149
T639/59 Budget (Reaction to the budget, backbench views 1981 - correspondence, minutes, meeting records) Part C Begins: 1981 Mar 3 Ends: 1981 Apr 30 Date of release: 2012 Classification: Confidential Pages: 236
T639/60 Budget (Reaction to the budget, backbench views 1981 - correspondence, minutes, meeting records) Part D Begins: 1981 May 1 Ends: 1981 Jun 29 Date of release: 2012 Classification: Confidential Pages: 104
T639/61 Budget (Budget planning; backbench rebellion to secure reduction in DERV - correspondence, minutes, meeting records) Part A Begins: 1981 Feb 11 Ends: 1981 Apr 29 Date of release: 2012 Classification: Secret Pages: 167
T639/62 Budget (Reaction to the budget - backbench rebellion to secure reduction in DERV - correspondence, minutes, meeting records) Part B Begins: 1981 May 1 Ends: 1981 Jun 29 Date of release: 2012 Classification: Confidential Pages: 104
T639/63 Europe (ECOFIN [Brussels], Mar 1981; preparation for G5, April 1981 - briefing, draft conclusions, notes passed in meeting) Part A Begins: 1980 Oct 13 Ends: 1981 Mar 13 Date of release: 2012 Classification: Confidential Pages: 240
T639/64 Europe (ECOFIN [Luxembourg], Jun 1981; meeting with European Investment Bank governors, Jun 1981 - briefing, correspondence, handwritten speaking notes) Part B Begins: 1981 May 27 Ends: 1981 Jun 12 Date of release: 2012 Classification: Confidential Pages: 128
T639/65 Europe (ECOFIN [Luxembourg], Jun 1981; meeting with European Investment Bank governors, Jun 1981 - briefing, bilaterals, meeting records) Part C Begins: 1981 Jun 14 Ends: 1981 Jun 16 Date of release: 2012 Classification: Confidential Pages: 94
T639/66 Budget (1979, 1981 - minutes, correspondence, meeting records) Part A Begins: 1979 May 16 Ends: 1981 Feb 10 Date of release: 2012 Classification: Secret Pages: 176
T639/251 Budget (1981, 1983 - minutes, correspondence, meeting records) Part B Begins: 1981 Feb 12 Ends: 1983 Jan 17 Date of release: 2012 Classification: Secret Pages: 154
T639/67 Europe (Chancellor's visit to The Hague, Jun 1981 - press release of speech) Begins: 1981 Jun 3 Ends: 1981 Jun 3 Date of release: 2012 Classification: Unclassified Pages: 38
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