Freud In The City

David Freud, the great grandson of Sigmund Freud, was born in London and educated at the Whitgift School in Croydon and then read PPE at Merton College, Oxford. He went into journalism, first as a graduate trainee with Thomson on the Western Mail in Cardiff, before moving to the Financial Times. For his last four years at the FT, he wrote the Lex Column. In 1984, David Freud joined stockbrokers Rowe & Pitman, after a morning's introduction to the different parts of the firm, he returned to find a British Airways file on his previously empty desk. He never managed to clear his desk again and retired twenty years later as vice chairman of UBS Investment Banking...leaving a rather messy legacy in his wastepaper basket! But what do bankers do after a successful career? Many rest on their laurels and live comfortably off the fruits of their endeavours. Not so David Freud. He has reinvented himself with two new parallel but very unusual careers. Firstly he was chief executive of the Portland Trust committed to promoting peace and stability between Palestinians and Israelis through economic development. Secondly, in 2006 he was commissioned by Prime Minister Tony Blair to take a completely fresh look at the country's 'Welfare to Work' programme. His original thinking in his subsequent report has been accepted as the way forward by all the parties across the political divide. He was appointed to the House of Lords by David Cameron as the Minister of State for Welfare Reform to implement the Government's welfare policies. His work in this sector has gained international recognition and acclaim. He stood down from his government role in December 2016.