LinkedIn Profiles: Fact or Fiction Explained

Rachel Reeves has a habit of presenting herself as a whiz with numbers, the kind of person who could juggle economic data while balancing Britain’s books—all with the poise of someone who's just breezed through a chess championship. The problem? Like her claims of being a chess prodigy, much of Reeves’ economic pedigree seems to be a bit... stretched. Her LinkedIn profile paints the picture of an "economist" deeply entrenched in the financial sector during the 2008 crisis, but according to a Guido Fawkes investigation, the reality is much more mundane. In fact, if LinkedIn profiles are anything to go by, Reeves may well be the J.K. Rowling of professional fiction.

The Economist Who Wasn’t

Let’s start with Reeves’ HBOS days. According to her own biography, she worked as an economist at the Halifax Bank of Scotland (HBOS) in the midst of the global financial crisis, bravely watching the markets collapse and pondering how "those on the lowest incomes suffer most." Noble, right? Unfortunately, Reeves’ former colleagues from that time paint a far less glamorous picture. In reality, Reeves wasn’t grappling with economic forecasts but rather handling IT complaints and small projects in a back office. If she was using her "economist brain," it was probably to figure out why someone’s computer wouldn’t turn on.

Reeves’ LinkedIn claims she was working as an "economist," but Guido Fawkes spoke to her colleagues at HBOS, who revealed that she was actually part of a tiny support team, far removed from the Economics Department. She wasn’t exactly on the front lines of saving the financial system, unless fixing printer jams counts as crisis management. Reeves’ CV lists this position as a badge of economic expertise, but it seems her office was as close to the Economics Department as the IT helpdesk is to solving global warming.

Selective CV Syndrome: The Chess Champion Fantasy

It’s not the first time Reeves has been accused of playing fast and loose with the truth. Only last week, Guido exposed her "chess champion" claims as yet another myth. The narrative of Reeves being a chess wunderkind was a convenient way to bolster her image as a clever strategist. But as it turns out, the only championship-level chess moves she’s made seem to involve outflanking the truth.

This penchant for embellishment has become something of a theme in Reeves’ career. When confronted about the discrepancy between her HBOS job description and the reality, her team didn’t deny that she wasn’t actually an economist at the bank. Instead, they offered a non-answer, saying she "covered various areas using her economist background." It’s a bit like saying the person who waters the plants at a hospital has medical experience because they’re surrounded by doctors.

LinkedIn Profiles: Fact or Fiction?

Which brings us to the bigger question: Are LinkedIn profiles the new fiction section? Reeves’ biography, much like her chess skills, seems to have been meticulously crafted to hit all the right professional notes. She lists time at the Bank of England, the British Embassy in Washington, and, of course, HBOS as evidence of her finely tuned economic brain. But if you scratch beneath the surface, the story gets a little less impressive.

Former colleagues at the Bank of England were less than complimentary, with one reportedly describing her as "f***ing useless." Not exactly the ringing endorsement you want on your CV. And while Reeves might have worked at prestigious institutions, her roles were far from being the key economic positions she likes to portray. It seems her LinkedIn profile has undergone the kind of airbrushing that would make Instagram influencers blush.

But this isn’t just an issue of puffed-up résumés. Reeves isn’t an ambitious junior executive looking for her next promotion—she’s the Chancellor, potentially the next person in charge of the UK’s economy. And when someone tasked with managing billions of pounds in public money seems to be inflating their own work history, you can’t help but wonder how much of their policy will be based on reality.

Preparing for the Tax Bombshell with a Fictional Backstory

The timing couldn’t be worse. Reeves is about to drop a huge tax bombshell on Britain, supposedly backed by her economic expertise. But as these revelations about her CV begin to unravel, so too does her credibility. If she’s capable of stretching the truth about her own background, how are we supposed to trust her when she starts tinkering with the national budget?

To be fair, Reeves isn’t the first politician to pad their CV—politics is practically a breeding ground for these embellishments. But there’s a difference between talking up your achievements and spinning entire fairy tales. And as the pressure mounts for Reeves to deliver on Labour’s economic promises, the gap between the carefully curated LinkedIn profile and the reality of her experience becomes harder to ignore

And how has Reeves responded to this looming crisis? With all the grace of someone trying to reboot a malfunctioning computer in the HBOS complaints department. There’s been little in the way of clear strategy, and much like her LinkedIn profile, Reeves’ response has been more fictional than factual.

The Moral of the Story: LinkedIn is the New Fiction Bestseller

Rachel Reeves’ career story is a masterclass in how to spin a narrative that’s just factual enough to pass, but fictional enough to impress. From her non-economist economist stint at HBOS to her mythical chess championship, Reeves’ LinkedIn profile is less a résumé and more a work of fiction.

As she prepares to step into even more significant responsibilities, the cracks in her public persona are beginning to show. At the end of the day, you can only polish your LinkedIn profile for so long before people start asking questions. And when they do, the truth might not look so pretty.

In politics, as in life, there’s a difference between telling your story and writing a fantasy. And right now, Rachel Reeves seems to be stuck in the latter—just don’t expect her to admit it on LinkedIn.