Local politics can often be thankless, says chartered accountant and councillor Chris White, who became interested in politics while studying at university but postponed pursuing a full-time role in politics to study for his chartered accountancy qualification.

White was among the chartered accountants who this year were awarded with an OBE (Officer of the Order of the British Empire) in the King’s 2024 Birthday Honours List for his services to local government. Reacting to the news, he says: “I don’t get many thank-you letters, nor do any of my colleagues of any party. We get a lot of blame. Sometimes you’re personally blamed for things you can do nothing about because people don’t understand the distinction between a councillor and the council. It becomes a little easier to cope with that sort of criticism over time, but to have this recognition is rather fun.”

After qualifying with a large firm and working in training for a number of years, White went freelance to allow time for his interest in local politics. He was elected to Hertfordshire county council in 1993 and is the longest-serving living county councillor in Hertfordshire. Much later, in 2008, he became a district councillor. “I started in an unusual direction. Most people go district and then county. I did it the other way round. County councils meet during the day and it suited my personality, timetable and family life,” White says.

A broader remit

His political activities have not been confined to Hertfordshire; he was instrumental in setting up the East of England Regional Assembly in 1997, and was leader of the Assembly’s Liberal Democrats group for 10 years. 

White also became chair of the Regeneration Board of the Local Government Association in 2004. A big highlight was becoming Chair of the Culture, Tourism and Sport Board in 2006 in the run-up to the London Olympics in 2012. “I had a role, not a big one, but I persuaded the Local Government Association to back the bid, which it previously wasn’t intending to do. I suppose that’s an achievement,” he says wryly.

Alongside his regular duties as councillor, he also acted as campaign director for Daisy Cooper in 2019 when she stood for election and became Liberal Democrat MP for St Albans, and again this year “when she won it with a much-increased majority”.

His financial acumen, thanks to his accountancy qualification, has provided White with a solid foundation for dealing with local government finances, which have long been tight. He also kept his hand in with the accountancy sector by serving as a commissioner at the former Audit Commission for Local Authorities and the National Health Service in England for six years up until 2011 (it was abolished in 2015). He also chaired audit committees on three different authorities – County, District and the Police Authority. 

“The Audit Commission is a much-missed organisation. It’s not been good news not having it around. Chairing audit committees, what you noticed probably within half an hour of a meeting is that a third of people in the room know what you’re talking about, but two-thirds do not. And that’s been a problem in all of the authorities,” he says.

White announced earlier this year his plans to step down as leader of the district council and to stop being a district councillor “on the grounds that people were still quite pleased with what I was doing and the old adage is that it’s good to leave the stage while they’re still applauding”.

In the meantime, White is very much looking forward to his investiture and attending the official Honours ceremony on 6 November in the Grand Reception Room at Windsor Castle, together with his wife and daughters.