George Osborne

The son of a baronet and a debutante, George Gideon Oliver Osborne grew up in the company of the elite. He has a personal fortune estimated at £4 million, as the beneficiary of a trust fund that owns a stake in Osborne & Little, the wallpaper and fabrics company co-founded by his father, Sir Peter. While at Oxford, Mr Osborne joined the Bullingdon Club, a dining society reserved for the super-rich. After working at Conservative Central Office he was backed by William Hague to run for Parliament and in 2001 he became the youngest Tory MP. With David Cameron, his Bullingdon contemporary, Mr Osborne quickly transformed into a leading light in the “Notting Hill set”, a coterie of Young Turks surrounding Michael Howard. As Shadow Chancellor, Mr Osborne has been leading the attacks on Gordon Brown’s handling of the economy and will spearhead the party’s general election campaign. He is married to the daughter of Lord Howell of Guildford, a former Conservative minister.

Nathaniel Rothschild

Aged 37, the youngest child of Jacob Rothschild, the 4th Baron Rothschild. He is co-chairman of Atticus Capital, an investment fund, and is considered to be a rising star in the financial world. While at Oxford he was a member of the Bullingdon Club at the same time as George Osborne. Mr Rothschild had a reputation as a playboy when he was younger but he has now become a respected financier and investment adviser. He counts billionaires such as Oleg Deripaska and Roman Abramovich, the owner of Chelsea Football Club, among his friends. Mr Rothschild’s home is in the Swiss ski town Klosters, but he also owns five properties on the Greek island of Corfu. Andrew Feldman One of Mr Cameron’s closest friends, who took charge of Tory HQ in July. He runs a family textile business and was a deputy treasurer of the party when Mr Cameron became leader in 2005. Mr Cameron had been trying since then to persuade Mr Feldman, 42, to become more involved in running the party machine. He now works three days a week in the new post of chief executive, but is said to have little say over political direction or communication, although he does have control over theHQ. Mr Feldman became friends with Mr Cameron at Brasenose College, Oxford, where the pair helped to organise the May Ball. He was one of the key figures in persuading Mr Cameron to run for the leadership.

Oleg Deripaska

Thought to be Russia’s richest man, with a fortune estimated at $28 billion (£16.3 billion) last year. His wife, Polina, is the daughter of the late President Yeltsin’s chief of staff, and Mr Deripaska, 40, is rumoured to be very close to Vladimir Putin. Mr Deripaska’s investment vehicle is called Basic Element and through this he controls Rusal, the world’s largest aluminium producer. Mr Deripaska also has insurance, car manufacturing and banking interests. Two years ago he bought LDV, the former Leyland Daf vehicle-maker. He owns a house in Central London and his £80 milllion superyacht, the Queen K, is often seen at European resorts. Mr Deripaska had his US visa revoked last year, without a reason being given.

Peter Mandelson

The man who assured us that he was “intensely relaxed about people getting filthy rich” has always been attracted to wealth. Lord Mandelson became the first Secretary of State to resign twice. He lasted only five months at the Department of Trade and Industry, resigning in December 1998 after the disclosure that he accepted a £373,000 loan from Geoffrey Robinson to buy a house. He quit as Northern Ireland Secretary in 2001 after being accused of helping one of the billionaire Hinduja brothers to get a British passport. He was later cleared of any impropriety. He was at the centre of the new Labour project, earning the title of “spin-doctor” in 1985 and, later, “Prince of Darkness”.

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