'secret weapon'
Who is Jeremy Hunt’s wife Lucia Guo and how many children do they have?
His wife's occupation stands in stark contrast to his own
JEREMY Hunt is a Tory politician who has held many roles in the Conservative government over the years.
Yet, behind the scenes, his personal life with his wife Lucia Guo remains relatively private - here's what we know.
1
Who is Jeremy Hunt's wife Lucia Guo?
Lucia Guo is the wife of British politician and Chancellor of the Exchequer, Jeremy Hunt.
Jeremy was appointed as Chancellor on October 14, 2022, following the dismissal of Kwasi Kwarteng, and has served in the role ever since.
Born in the city of Xi’an, China, Lucia is often spotted by her husband’s side during political events.
In 2019, Hunt referred to wife Lucia as his ‘’secret weapon’’ during his failed Conservative Party leadership campaign.
She again supported him as he launched his bid for the Tory leadership in 2022, but he ended up being knocked out in the first round.
When did Jeremy Hunt and Lucia Guo get married?
Mr Hunt first met his future wife at Warwick University in 2008.
At the time of their meeting, the pair were attending an event organised by Hotcourses - the online education business Hunt founded.
Guo worked at the University of Warwick helping to recruit students from China to study at the educational institution.
MOST READ IN POLITICS
After the pair met, they began dating and married a year later - following a proposal from Hunt near his parent's home in Surrey.
Recalling how her husband proposed while on a country walk, Lucia said: ‘’He asked me to put my hands in a tree.
King Charles brushes off CBB drama and gets back to work to meet Jeremy Hunt ahead of Spring Budget 2024
"I said, no, it looked like a fox hole and I thought he’d do some trick on me.
"He said there’s something in there for you. It was a ring!’’
Lucia and Jeremy celebrated their nuptials and wed in a traditional Chinese ceremony in Xi’an, China.
Sharing a rare glimpse into their married life, in June 2019, Lucia revealed that she calls her husband ‘’big rice’’, and told of how her family had difficulty pronouncing Jeremy’s name during their first encounter.
She : ‘’My grandma found it very hard to say ‘Jeremy’ so she would just call him the ‘big mi’.
"Mi means ‘rice’, so I call him ‘big rice’.’’
How many children do they have?
Lucia and Jeremy are the parents of three children - Jack, Anna, and Eleanor - who were each born two years apart.
Their son Jack was born in 2010, with Anna following two years later and the youngest Eleanor was born in 2014.
My children are half Chinese and I do not want them to grow up in a country where people look at immigrants and say it’s difficult for me to access NHS services because of people like you
Jeremy Hunt on immigration
Like many in the world of politics, the couple tend to keep their children out of the spotlight.
In 2014, Mr Hunt admitted that he feared for the future of his three children who are half Chinese – because uncontrolled immigration risks causing "tensions" in Britain.
"I’d like to make one general point about immigration," he said. "My wife is Chinese and she obviously lives with me in London.
"My children are half Chinese and I do not want them to grow up in a country where people look at immigrants and say it’s difficult for me to access NHS services because of people like you."
He continued: "And that’s why it’s so important to have sensible, balanced, controlled immigration in this country.
"Because otherwise, we’ll have social divisions, we’ll have tensions, which thankfully in this country we’ve avoided for many years unlike other countries."
What does Lucia Guo do for a living?
Lucia’s first known job in the UK was as a student recruiter at Warwick University.
Since then, she’s been an active member of the media industry, appearing regularly on Sky TV’s China Hour and hosting a feature on the show, Signature Flowers of China.
Much of her recent TV work showcases Chinese culture to a UK audience.
Topics