Background
Lesley Ann Cooke was born in Stranraer, Scotland in 1955.
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Lesley Strathie
Edit ProfileEducation
Lesley Strathie was educated at Stranraer Academy and began her civil service career at age 16 at Scotland"s then-Department of Health and Social Security, before moving to London in 1984.
Career
She was named Chief Operating Officer of Jobcentre Plus in 2003, and succeeded David Anderson as Acting Chief Executive on 16 May 2005 before being confirmed on 13 October. This appointment also made her the Second Permanent Secretary to the Department for Work and Pensions. In November 2008 she was appointed Chief Executive and Permanent Secretary of Her Majesty Revenue and Customs, succeeding Dave Hartnett who had worked as Acting Chief Executive and Chairman after the resignation of Paul Gray.
Under instructions from ministers, she decreased HMRC staff by thousands and closing hundreds of tax offices leading to complaints that this resulted in a worse service to taxpayers and many critical reports by Parliament"s Public Accounts Committee.
On 10 June 2010, Strathie appeared on the British Broadcasting Corporation One flagship consumer programme Watchdog as a result of complaints against HMRC, mainly about the high level of mistakes. Strathie stood down as Chief Executive from HMRC on 9 November 2011 to concentrate on her further treatment for cancer.
She died on 14 January 2012, aged 56.
Achievements
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Born
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Died
January 14, 2012 (aged 56) -
Nationality
British