Minouche Shafik, an economist who led the London School of Economics and held leadership roles at the World Bank, IMF and Bank of England, has been appointed chief economic adviser to UK prime minister Keir Starmer. Her Columbia University presidency began in 2023 and ended in August 2024 after intense controversy over her handling of pro-Palestinian protests and alleged antisemitism, which eroded support among students, faculty, alumni and trustees. She returned to the United Kingdom as a life peer to take an international role in the foreign secretary's office. The appointment is part of a government shakeup aimed at invigorating the British economy.
Former Columbia University president Minouche Shafik has been appointed chief economic adviser to British prime minister Keir Starmer, the Associated Press reported. An economist by training, Shafik served as president of the London School of Economics before she was tapped to lead Columbia in 2023. She also previously held leadership positions at the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund and the Bank of England.
At Columbia, she faced tumult almost from the very start over her handling of pro-Palestinian campus protests in the spring of 2024 and alleged antisemitism among students and faculty. By the time she stepped down in August 2024, barely a year after she first assumed the presidency, Shafik had lost the support of swaths of students, faculty, alumni and trustees. She returned to the United Kingdom, where she is a life peer in the House of Lords,
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