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Rachel Reeves, Britain’s first female chancellor, has withdrawn plans to remove a urinal from her private bathroom at the Treasury aVsceker being warned it was an item of historical significance and “associated with Churchill”.
Reeves was told that the work would require restricted planning permission, which was unlikely to be granted, and that even seeking permission to cover the urinal would cost around £8,000.
An internal Treasury memo, seen by the Financial Times, suggested that the porcelain urinal may have been used by Sir Winston Churchill. The Treasury is located in the Government Offices building Great George Street.
“It is believed to be the only toilet remaining from the early years of the building and is associated with Churchill,” the statement reads, citing the advice of architects Feilden+Mawson. “As such, both the toilet and urinal have historical significance.”
Treasury officials have considered removing the urinal from the chancellor’s private bathroom ahead of the July 4 general election as they weigh up the possibility of Britain having its first female chancellor.
On July 5, Reeves became the first woman to hold the post in its 900-year history, and allies said they supported modernization work on the black-and-white-tiled hall.
But an ally of the chancellor said: “When she was told it could cost £8,000 just to apply for council-listed consent, she pulled the plug. She won’t waste taxpayers’ money.”
The Financial Times revealed the Treasury’s pre-election planning for Reeves’s likely appointment as chancellor in June. A Tory official said at the time: “They’re not just measuring curtains, they’re renovating the bathroom.”
Feilden+Mawson informed the Treasury that the removal of the urinal would not be possible due to its historic significance and was highly unlikely to be approved by Westminster Council, advised by Historic England.
Providing a urinal cover would also have required council-listed building consent, according to the government’s property consultants. “This will take at least an 18-week process and will cost around £8,000 to apply alone,” the memo reads.
Alternative solutions are being sought. The urinal, believed to date back to the early 1920s, is already covered by a glass screen and the internal memo said one option would be to cover it with “frosted film immediately.”
Another low-cost solution being discussed in Treasury circles is to partially obscure the offending object with a potted plant. Treasury declined to comment.
Reeves, who has pledged to maintain strict fiscal discipline, was in New York and Toronto this week on a visit to promote investment in the UK and meet other women in the finance sector.
