Fiona McLeod Hill CBE, formerly known as Fiona Cunningham,[1] is a British political adviser, business strategist and founder of Future Resilience Forum.[2][3][4] She served as Joint Downing Street Chief of Staff supporting prime minister Theresa May, alongside Nick Timothy, until her resignation following the 2017 general election.[5][6][7][8]
Fiona Hill | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Downing Street Chief of Staff | |
| In office 14 July 2016 – 9 June 2017 Serving with Nick Timothy | |
| Prime Minister | Theresa May |
| Deputy | Joanna Penn |
| Preceded by | Edward Llewellyn |
| Succeeded by | Gavin Barwell |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1973 (age 50–51) |
| Nationality | British |
| Political party | Conservative |
Early life
editFiona Hill was born in Glasgow, and attended St Stephen's Roman Catholic Secondary School in Port Glasgow.[4] Before turning to politics, she worked as a journalist in both the press and broadcast sectors; her experience included working for the Daily Record, The Scotsman and Sky News.[1][4] She joined the Conservative Party press office in 2006, before spending a period at the British Chamber of Commerce, and then returning to work for the Conservatives.[4]
Career
editHome Office
editFrom 2010, Hill worked alongside Theresa May in the Home Office as a special adviser.[9] She left government after being forced to resign as May's special adviser in a 2014 dispute with Michael Gove over alleged extremism in schools, prompting then Prime Minister, David Cameron, to insist that May sack her.[10][11][12][13] Hill then became an associate director of the Centre for Social Justice think tank,[4] and in 2015 became a Director of lobbying firm Lexington Communications.[9][14]
Downing Street
editOn 14 July 2016, following the resolution of the 2016 Conservative leadership election, Hill was appointed joint chief of staff to Theresa May, the day after May became Prime Minister.[8] Fiona Hill was the first female Chief-of-Staff at Downing Street.[15]
Little of her own political stance is on public record. Unlike Timothy, with whom she shared the post of Chief of Staff for a year, she avoided writing opinion articles.[3] James Kirkup, who worked with Hill as a journalist on The Scotsman, suggested "it's probably fair to say that Mrs May only talks about modern slavery [as a priority for government action] because of Ms Hill, and that's not the only issue of which that is true".[2]
Fiona Hill, one of Theresa May's closest advisers, played a pivotal role in the development of May's anti-human trafficking campaign, leading to the introduction of the Modern Slavery Act in 2015. Fiona Hill is also author of A Modern Response to Modern Slavery research in Europe, published at the Centre for Social Justice.[16][17][18] Additionally, as noted by May biographer Rosa Prince, author of "Theresa May: The Enigmatic Prime Minister," Hill was likely consulted by May before the decision to call for the election in April.[19][20]
The 2017 general election saw the return of the Conservatives as a minority government, with their majority dependent on the Democratic Unionist Party, leading to widespread calls within the party for both Hill and Timothy to be sacked.[21][22] According to reports, Hill irritated the Scottish Conservatives in particular. They complained of her excessive "interference" and of being told not to run a campaign too detached from the one run from London.[22] Nevertheless, their leader Ruth Davidson chose to ignore the demand, and achieved a considerable increase in the number of Scottish MPs. This result was crucial in mitigating the loss of seats south of the border and appeared to question key elements of Hill and Timothy's election strategy. Within days, and in the face of the growing backlash, both chiefs of staff resigned.[22]
Marsham Street Consultants
editIn March 2019, Fiona Hill founded Marsham Street Consultants, a company that offers strategic advice and insights, drawing on Hill's extensive experience in government and politics.[23][24]
Future Resilience Forum
editIn October 2023, Fiona Hill founded Future Resilience Forum, a non-partisan international forum, where the key challenges of our time can be discussed under Chatham House rules by global experts and international political figures.[25][26]
The 2023 Future Resilience Forum focused on the Global South and was led at the Old Royal Naval College in Greenwich. The Forum was attended by a range of world leaders, including the UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak,[27] Senegal's President Macky Sall, Iraq's President Abdul Latif Rashid, former UK Foreign Secretary William Hague, Chairman of the Independent Energy Policy Institute Narendra Taneja, Minister for Digital in Japan Taro Kono, CEO Control Risks Nick Allan and two former heads of MI6, Sir John Scarlett and Sir Alex Younger and many others.[28][29][30]
Personal life
editWhile at Sky News Hill met Tim Cunningham, a TV executive, whom she married; the couple later divorced. Hill subsequently lived with Sir Charles Farr whom she met at the Home Office during his time as Director-General for the Office of Security and Counter-Terrorism. Farr passed away in 2019.[31][32]
References
edit- ^ a b Addley, Esther (12 December 2016). "Terrifying or tenacious: the power of Fiona Hill, Theresa May's closest ally". The Guardian. Retrieved 31 January 2017.
- ^ a b Kirkup, James (21 October 2016). "Fiona Hill and Nick Timothy: the story being told about Theresa May's top advisers is inaccurate and unfair". The Telegraph. Retrieved 30 October 2016.
- ^ a b Hardman, Isabel (16 July 2016). "Beware the aides of May! The people who'll really run the new government". The Spectator. Retrieved 16 July 2016.
- ^ a b c d e Garavelli, Dani (13 May 2017). "Insight: Fiona Hill, from Scotsman reporter to Theresa May's right-hand woman". The Scotsman. Retrieved 14 July 2017.
- ^ Aiden James; Victoria King; Pippa Simm; Alex Hunt; Gavin Stamp; Tom Moseley. "BBC Politics Live – 14 July 2016". BBC News. Retrieved 15 July 2016.
- ^ McInerney, Laura (22 March 2016). "Profiles: Nick Timothy". Schools Week. Retrieved 15 July 2016.
- ^ Peter Dominiczak; Christopher Hope; John Bingham (14 July 2016). "Theresa May's Cabinet a triumph for state education and women as new Prime Minister sweeps away Cameron favourites in 'Day of the Long Knives'". The Telegraph. Retrieved 15 July 2016.
- ^ a b "Press Release: Downing Street political advisers". Prime Minister's Office. 14 June 2016. Retrieved 15 July 2016 – via Gov.UK.
- ^ a b Leadbetter, Russell (19 February 2017). "Profile: The former football reporter from Greenock now the Prime Minister's striker". The Herald. Retrieved 14 July 2017.
- ^ "Home Office Quietly Deletes Letter To Michael Gove on Islamic Extremism (But It's Still on Google)". Buzzfeed. 6 June 2014. Retrieved 19 June 2014.
- ^ Helm, Toby; Boffey, Daniel; Mansell, Warwick (7 June 2014). "Furious Cameron slaps down Gove and May over 'Islamic extremism' row". The Observer. Retrieved 8 June 2014.
- ^ "Who's who in Team Theresa May". BBC News. 14 July 2016. Retrieved 31 January 2017.
- ^ "Michael Gove apologises over 'Trojan Horse' row with Theresa May". BBC News. 8 June 2014. Retrieved 31 January 2017.
- ^ "Team Members – Fiona Cunningham". Lexington Communications. Archived from the original on 17 August 2016. Retrieved 15 July 2016.
Fiona joined the team at Lexington as a Director in 2015. She previously spent over four years at the Home Office working directly to the Home Secretary, Theresa May on a wide range of policies including organised crime, policing, counter terrorism, immigration and modern slavery. On behalf of the Home Secretary, Hill led the work which created a Modern Slavery Act. She also published her own report on modern slavery across the EU.
- ^ Syal, Rajeev (29 June 2020). "Mark Sedwill to step down as UK's top civil servant". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 10 May 2024.
- ^ "A Modern Response to Modern Slavery". Europol. Retrieved 10 May 2024.
- ^ "Fiona Hill and Philip Rycroft join These Islands' Advisory Council". www.these-islands.co.uk. Retrieved 10 May 2024.
- ^ "FIONA HILL - Experts in Counter-Corruption and the Law of Armed Conflict". pavocat.com. 12 June 2020. Retrieved 10 May 2024.
- ^ Silvera, Ian (10 June 2017). "Who are Nick Timothy and Fiona Hill – May's 'arrogant' aides who stood down after election disaster?". International Business Times UK. Retrieved 10 May 2024.
- ^ "Know your representatives | Meat & Livestock Australia". MLA Corporate. Retrieved 10 May 2024.
- ^ Asthana, Anushka; Mason, Rowena (9 June 2017). "Tories say Theresa May must sack 'monsters who sunk our party'". The Guardian. Retrieved 10 June 2017.
- ^ a b c Cochrane, Alan; Johnson, Simon (9 June 2017). "Ruth Davidson planning Scottish Tory breakaway as she challenges Theresa May's Brexit plan". The Telegraph. Retrieved 10 June 2017.
- ^ Balls, Katy (12 October 2022). "'Election campaigns are like voodoo': Fiona Hill breaks her silence". The Spectator. Retrieved 10 May 2024.
- ^ "'No one wanted to employ me': Fiona Hill lifts the lid on life after Downing Street". POLITICO. 10 March 2023. Retrieved 10 May 2024.
- ^ "About - Future Resilience Forum". futureresilienceforum.com. Retrieved 10 May 2024.
- ^ "Frankly Speaking: Fiona Hill on the Future Resilience Forum". Arab News. 8 October 2023. Retrieved 10 May 2024.
- ^ Mason, Rowena (9 October 2023). "Rishi Sunak says UK is 'poised' to offer Israel military help if required". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 10 May 2024.
- ^ Adebukola, Mariam (12 October 2023). "Osinbajo Addresses World Leaders At UK Forum, Calls For Global Collaboration - New Telegraph". newtelegraphng.com. Retrieved 10 May 2024.
- ^ "Future Resilience Forum 2023 hosts Community Jameel". www.communityjameel.org. Retrieved 10 May 2024.
- ^ "PM's speech at the Future Resilience Forum: 9 October 2023". GOV.UK. 9 October 2023. Retrieved 10 May 2024.
- ^ Butter, Susannah (31 August 2016). "Theresa May's secret weapon: super-advisors Fiona Hill and Nick Timothy". Evening Standard. Retrieved 20 February 2019.
- ^ Parker, George (7 June 2014). "May aide quits as Gove apologises". Financial Times. Retrieved 20 February 2019.