Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Africa

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Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Africa
Coat of arms of the United Kingdom (2022, lesser arms).svg
Royal Arms of His Majesty's Government
Incumbent
Vacant
since 7 September 2025
Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office
Style Minister
Nominator Prime Minister
Appointer The King
(on the advice of the Prime Minister)
Term length At His Majesty's pleasure
Formation28 June 2007

The parliamentary under-secretary of state for Africa is a ministerial portfolio in the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office of the UK government. The minister has responsibility for most of Africa, except North Africa which is part of the parliamentary under-secretary of state for the Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan and Pakistan portfolio.

Contents

History

During the Brown ministry, Mark Malloch Brown was appointed Minister of State at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office with Africa included as part of his portfolio. North Africa was combined with the Middle East in a single portfolio held by Bill Rammell. [1] Following the Conservative Party's victory at the 2010 United Kingdom general election and the subsequent formation of the Cameron-Clegg coalition, both portfolios were retained but demoted to Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State rank and assigned to Henry Bellingham and Alistair Burt, respectively. [2] Upon the formation of the First May ministry, both portfolios were combined into a single Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Middle East and Africa held by Tobias Ellwood, but were later returned to their original portfolios at Minister of State rank. [3] [4] This arrangement was retained by the First Johnson ministry, but under the Second Johnson ministry the Africa portfolio was demoted back to Parliamentary Secretary rank. [5]

In early 2022, Africa was combined with Latin America and the Caribbean in a new parliamentary under-secretary of state portfolio assigned to Vicky Ford, while North Africa was joined with South and Central Asia. [6] During the brief Truss ministry, responsibility for the whole of Africa was assigned to Gillian Keegan as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State. [7] For the duration of the Sunak ministry North Africa was once again combined with the Middle East portfolio under Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon, while the rest of Africa was combined with the Minister of State for Development under Andrew Mitchell. [8] [9] With the formation of the Starmer ministry in 2024, North Africa and the Middle East were assigned to Hamish Falconer and the rest of Africa to Lord Collins of Highbury, both as Parliamentary Under-Secretaries of State. [10] [7]

Responsibilities

The following is a list of the office's current responsibilities: [11]

List of ministers for Africa

The following is a list of ministers for Africa since 2007: [1] [12] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10]

TitleNamePortraitTerm of officeLength of ServicePolitical party P.M. F.Sec.
Minister of State [a] Lord Malloch Brown 2.jpg 28 June 200724 July 20092 years and 26 days Labour Brown Miliband
Baroness Kinnock.jpg 13 October 200911 May 20106 months and 28 days
Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Africa [b] Official portrait of Sir Henry Bellingham crop 2.jpg 11 May 20105 September 20126 months and 18 days Conservative Cameron Hague
Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State [c] Foreign Office Minister Mark Simmonds meeting the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby in London, 3 March 2014 (Simmonds cropped).jpg 5 September 201211 August 20141 year, 7 months and 3 days
Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State [d] Official portrait of James Duddridge MP crop 2.jpg 11 August 201416 July 201611 months and 22 days Hammond
Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Middle East and Africa Official portrait of Tobias Ellwood, 2022 (cropped).jpg 16 July 201613 June 201710 months and 28 days May Johnson
Minister of State for Africa [e] Official portrait of Rory Stewart crop 2.jpg 15 June 20179 January 20186 months and 25 days
Minister of State for International Development and Africa [f] Official portrait of Harriett Baldwin MP crop 2.jpg 9 January 201825 July 20191 year, 6 months and 16 days Hunt
Minister of State for Africa [g] Official portrait of Andrew Stephenson MP crop 2.jpg 25 July 201913 February 20206 months and 18 days Johnson Raab
Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Africa [h] Official portrait of James Duddridge MP crop 2.jpg 13 February 202016 September 20211 year, 7 months and 3 days
Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Africa (2021–2022) [i]
Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Africa, Latin America, and the Caribbean (2022) [j] 		Official portrait of Vicky Ford MP crop 2.jpg 16 September 20216 September 202211 months and 22 days Truss
Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Africa Official portrait of Gillian Keegan MP crop 2.jpg 7 September 202225 October 20221 month and 18 days Truss Cleverly
Minister of State for Development and Africa [k] Official portrait of Andrew Mitchell MP crop 2.jpg 25 October 20225 July 20241 month and 18 days Sunak Cleverly
Cameron
Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Africa [l] Official portrait of Lord Collins of Highbury crop 2, 2025.jpg 9 July 20247 September 20251 year, 1 month and 29 days Labour Starmer Lammy

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ North Africa was the responsibility of Bill Rammell from 2007 to 2009 and Ivan Lewis from 2009 to 2010. [1] [12]
  2. ↑ North Africa was part of Alistair Burt's portfolio as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Middle East and North Africa [2]
  3. ↑ North Africa was part of Alistair Burt's portfolio. [13]
  4. ↑ North Africa was part of Tobias Ellwood's portfolio. [14]
  5. ↑ North Africa was the responsibility of Alistair Burt as Minister of State for the Middle East and North Africa. [4]
  6. ↑ North Africa was the responsibility of Alistair Burt as Minister of State for the Middle East and North Africa. [15]
  7. ↑ North Africa was the responsibility of Andrew Murrison as Minister of State for the Middle East and North Africa. [16]
  8. ↑ North Africa was the responsibility of James Cleverly as Minister of State for the Middle East and North Africa. [17]
  9. ↑ North Africa was the responsibility of James Cleverly as Minister of State for the Middle East and North Africa. [18]
  10. ↑ North Africa was the respponsibility of Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon as Minister of State for South and Central Asia, United Nations, and the Commonwealth. [6]
  11. ↑ North Africa was the responsibility of Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon as minister of state for Middle East, North Africa, South Asia, United Nations and the Commonwealth. [8]
  12. ↑ North Africa is the responsibility of Hamish Falconer as parliamentary under-secretary of state for the Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan and Pakistan. [19]

References

  1. 1 2 3 List of Ministerial Responsibilities Including Executive Agencies and Non- Ministerial Departments November 2008. Cabinet Office.
  2. 1 2 3 "List of Ministerial Responsibilities Including Executive Agencies and Non- Ministerial Departments July 2010" (PDF). Cabinet Office. Retrieved 13 September 2025.
  3. 1 2 List of Ministerial Responsibilities Including Executive Agencies and Non- Ministerial Departments October 2016. Cabinet Office.
  4. 1 2 3 "List of Ministerial Responsibilities Including Executive Agencies and Non- Ministerial Departments December 2017" (PDF). Cabinet Office. Retrieved 13 September 2025.
  5. 1 2 "List of Ministerial Responsibilities Including Executive Agencies and Non-Ministerial Departments August 2020" (PDF). Cabinet Office. Retrieved 13 September 2025.
  6. 1 2 3 "List of Ministerial Responsibilities Including Executive Agencies and Non- Ministerial Departments May 2022" (PDF). Cabinet Office. Retrieved 13 September 2025.
  7. 1 2 3 "Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Africa)". GOV.UK. Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office. Retrieved 13 September 2025.
  8. 1 2 3 "Minister of State (Middle East, North Africa, South Asia, United Nations and the Commonwealth)". GOV.UK. Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office. Retrieved 13 September 2025.
  9. 1 2 "Minister of State (Development and Africa)". GOV.UK. Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office. Retrieved 13 September 2025.
  10. 1 2 "Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan and Pakistan)". GOV.UK. Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office. Retrieved 13 September 2025.
  11. ↑ Open Government Licence logo.svg  This article incorporates text published under the British Open Government Licence : "Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Africa)". GOV.UK. Foreign Commonwealth & Development Office. Retrieved 13 September 2025.
  12. 1 2 List of Ministerial Responsibilities Including Executive Agencies and Non- Ministerial Departments October 2009. Cabinet Office.
  13. ↑ "List of Ministerial Responsibilities Including Executive Agencies and Non- Ministerial Departments December 2013" (PDF). Cabinet Office. Retrieved 14 September 2025.
  14. ↑ List of Ministerial Responsibilities Including Executive Agencies and Non- Ministerial Departments July 2015. Cabinet Office.
  15. ↑ "List of Ministerial Responsibilities Including Executive Agencies and Non- Ministerial Departments March 2018" (PDF). Cabinet Office. Retrieved 14 September 2025.
  16. ↑ "List of Ministerial Responsibilities Including Executive Agencies and Non- Ministerial Departments October 2019" (PDF). Cabinet Office. Retrieved 14 September 2025.
  17. ↑ "List of Ministerial Responsibilities Including Executive Agencies and Non- Ministerial Departments March 2021" (PDF). Cabinet Office. Retrieved 14 September 2025.
  18. ↑ "List of Ministerial Responsibilities Including Executive Agencies and Non- Ministerial Departments November 2021" (PDF). Cabinet Office. Retrieved 14 September 2025.
  19. ↑ "List of Ministerial Responsibilities Including the List of Non- Ministerial Departments and Executive Agencies November 2024" (PDF). Cabinet Office. Retrieved 13 September 2025.
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