Downing Street

Downing Street in London, England, has for more than three hundred years housed the official residences of two of the most senior British Cabinet ministers: the First Lord of the Treasury, an office now synonymous with that of Prime Minister of the United Kingdom; and the Second Lord of the Treasury, an office held by the Chancellor of the Exchequer. The Prime Minister's official residence is 10 Downing Street; the Chancellor's official residence is next door at Number 11. The Government's Chief Whip has an official residence at Number 12, though the current Chief Whip's residence is at Number 9.

Downing Street is located in Whitehall in central London, a few minutes' walk from the Houses of Parliament and a little farther from Buckingham Palace. The street was built in the 1680s by Sir George Downing (1632–1689), on the site of a mansion called Hampden House. The houses on the south side of the street were demolished in the nineteenth century to make way for government offices, now occupied by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. "Downing Street" is often used as a metonym for the Government of the United Kingdom.

9 Downing Street

9 Downing Street is one of the buildings situated on Downing Street in the City of Westminster in London, England.

Under the current government, the building is being used to house the office of the Chief Whip and is also the Downing Street entrance to the Privy Council Office.

Formerly the building was part of the more famous 10 Downing Street, official residence of the First Lord of the Treasury, who since the early years of the 19th century has always been the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. Many internal refurbishments over the years have altered the interior of number 10, 11 and 12 to the point that they are all part of a single complex. It was part of a reorganisation in 2001 that the address was created.

Until 2009, number 9 was home to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council, which moved to Middlesex Guildhall in August of that year along with the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom.

Although number 9 is currently the address of the office of the Chief Whip, the Chief Whip's official residence is still 12 Downing Street.

11 Downing Street

11 Downing Street (commonly known as Number 11), is the official residence of Britain's Second Lord of the Treasury who is formally recognised as the Chancellor of the Exchequer.

The first Chancellor to live there was Henry Petty-Fitzmaurice in 1806, but Number 11 did not become the Chancellor's official residence until 1828.

It is currently the official residence of George Osborne, who was appointed as Chancellor by Prime Minister David Cameron on 11 May 2010.

Background

Number 11 is part of a charcoal-brick Georgian-era converted mansion, overlooking St. James's Park, that consists—from left to right—Number 12, Number 11 and Number 10.

Number 11 is located on the left side of Number 10, the official residence of the First Lord of the Treasury, which is recognised as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom since the earliest era of the 19th century. Number 12, located on the left side of Number 11, is the official residence of the Chief Whip, but it is now used as the Prime Minister's press office.

Downing Street (disambiguation)

Downing Street may be: