Simon Clarke: podcast appearances and interviews

Sir Simon Richard Clarke is a British Conservative politician who served as the Member of Parliament for Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland from 2017 until 2024. During his time in office, he held several notable positions within the UK government, including Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities in 2022 and Chief Secretary to the Treasury from 2021 to 2022. Clarke was appointed Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury following Boris Johnson's appointment as Prime Minister and served as Minister of State for Regional Growth and Local Government from February to September 2020. In the 2021 cabinet reshuffle, he was appointed Chief Secretary to the Treasury, becoming the youngest cabinet minister in that department. After Boris Johnson's resignation in 2022, Clarke supported Liz Truss's bid to become Conservative leader. Following Truss's appointment as Prime Minister, he was appointed to his brief role as Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, which he held for 49 days before resigning prior to Rishi Sunak's accession to the Prime Ministership. Clarke is affiliated with the Tory think tank Onward. He lost his parliamentary seat in the general election held on 4 July 2024, narrowly defeated despite Reform UK not fielding a candidate.