Shadow Home Secretary

Last updated

Shadow Home Secretary
Official portrait of Rt Hon Yvette Cooper MP.jpg
Incumbent
Yvette Cooper
since 29 November 2021
Appointer Leader of the Opposition
Inaugural holder Kenneth Younger
Formation14 December 1955
Website The Shadow Cabinet

In British politics, the Shadow Home Secretary (formally known as the Shadow Secretary of State for the Home Department) is the person within the shadow cabinet who shadows the Home Secretary; this effectively means scrutinising government policy on home affairs including policing, national security, and matters of citizenship. The Shadow Home Secretary also formerly had responsibility for the criminal justice system and the prison service; these responsibilities are now held by the Shadow Justice Secretary. If the opposition party is elected to government, the Shadow Home Secretary often becomes the new Home Secretary, though this is not always the case. The office has been held by Labour MP Yvette Cooper since 29 November 2021.

In recent decades, the positions of Home Secretary and Shadow Home Secretary have alternated between the Conservative and Labour parties. The corresponding position for the Liberal Democrats is the Liberal Democrat Home Affairs spokesperson.

List of Shadow Home Secretaries

NamePortraitEntered officeLeft officePartyShadow Cabinet
Kenneth Younger No image.svg 14 December 195513 May 1957 Labour Gaitskell
Patrick Gordon-Walker Patrick Gordon Walker.jpg 13 May 195712 March 1962Labour
George Brown George Brown, 1967.jpg 12 March 196215 February 1963Labour
Frank Soskice No image.svg 15 February 196315 October 1964Labour Wilson I
Edward Boyle 15 October 19644 August 1965 Conservative Douglas-Home
Peter Thorneycroft Peter Thorneycroft cropped.png 4 August 196513 April 1966Conservative Heath I
Quintin Hogg Quintin Hogg, Baron Hailsham Allan Warren.jpg 13 April 196618 June 1970Conservative
James Callaghan James Callaghan 1970 (cropped).jpg 18 June 197019 October 1971Labour Wilson II
Shirley Williams Shirley Williams, 1984.jpg 19 October 197125 November 1973Labour
Roy Jenkins Roy Jenkins 1977b.jpg 25 November 19734 March 1974Labour
Jim Prior 11 March 197413 June 1974Conservative Heath II
Keith Joseph 13 June 197411 February 1975Conservative
Ian Gilmour 18 February 197515 January 1976Conservative Thatcher
Willie Whitelaw 11 April 19764 May 1979Conservative
Merlyn Rees Merlyn Rees appearing on After Dark , 16 July 1988 - (cropped).jpg 4 May 19794 November 1980Labour Callaghan
Roy Hattersley Roy Hattersley 2012 cropped 2.jpg 4 November 198031 October 1983Labour Foot
Gerald Kaufman Kaufman.JPG 31 October 198313 July 1987Labour Kinnock
Roy Hattersley Roy Hattersley 2012 cropped 2.jpg 13 July 198724 July 1992Labour
Tony Blair Tony Blair in 1997.jpg 24 July 199220 October 1994Labour Smith
Beckett
Jack Straw Jack Straw 2.jpg 20 October 19942 May 1997Labour Blair
Michael Howard Official portrait of Lord Howard of Lympne crop 2.jpg 2 May 199711 June 1997Conservative Major
Brian Mawhinney 11 June 19972 June 1998Conservative Hague
Norman Fowler Official portrait of Lord Fowler crop 2.jpg 2 June 199815 June 1999Conservative
Ann Widdecombe [1] Widdebookclub (cropped).jpg 15 June 199918 September 2001Conservative
Oliver Letwin [2] Oliver Letwin Official.jpg 18 September 200110 November 2003Conservative Duncan Smith
David Davis [3] Official portrait of Rt Hon David Davis MP crop 2.jpg 10 November 200312 June 2008Conservative Howard
Cameron
Dominic Grieve [4] Official portrait of Mr Dominic Grieve crop 2.jpg 12 June 200819 January 2009Conservative
Chris Grayling [5] Official portrait of Rt Hon Chris Grayling MP crop 2.jpg 19 January 20096 May 2010Conservative
Alan Johnson [6] Alan Johnson MP.jpg 12 May 20108 October 2010Labour Harman I
Ed Balls [7] Ed Balls 2.jpg 8 October 201020 January 2011Labour Miliband
Yvette Cooper [8] Official portrait of Rt Hon Yvette Cooper MP crop 2.jpg 20 January 201114 September 2015Labour
Harman II
Andy Burnham [9] Andy Burnham2.jpg 14 September 20156 October 2016Labour Corbyn
Diane Abbott [10] [11] Official portrait of Ms Diane Abbott crop 2.jpg 6 October 20165 April 2020Labour
Nick Thomas-Symonds [12] Official portrait of Nick Thomas-Symonds crop 2.jpg 5 April 2020 29 November 2021 Labour Starmer
Yvette Cooper [8] [13] Official portrait of Rt Hon Yvette Cooper MP crop 2.jpg 29 November 2021 IncumbentLabour

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Diane Abbott</span> British politician (born 1953)

Diane Julie Abbott is a British politician who has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Hackney North and Stoke Newington since 1987. She served in the Shadow Cabinet of Jeremy Corbyn as Shadow Home Secretary from 2016 to 2020. She is both the first black woman elected to parliament and the longest-serving black MP. Though she is a member of the Labour Party, she sits in the House of Commons as an independent, having had the whip suspended in April 2023.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Secretary of State for Education</span> United Kingdom government cabinet minister

The secretary of state for education, also referred to as the education secretary, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, responsible for the work of the Department for Education. The incumbent is a member of the Cabinet of the United Kingdom.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yvette Cooper</span> Shadow Home Secretary

Yvette Cooper is a British politician serving as Shadow Home Secretary since 2021, and previously from 2011 to 2015. She served in Gordon Brown's Cabinet as Chief Secretary to the Treasury from 2008 to 2009 and Work and Pensions Secretary from 2009 to 2010. A member of the Labour Party, she has been Member of Parliament (MP) for Normanton, Pontefract and Castleford, previously Pontefract and Castleford, since 1997.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Liam Byrne</span> British Labour Party politician

Liam Dominic Byrne is a British politician serving as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Birmingham Hodge Hill since 2004. A member of the Labour Party, he served in Prime Minister Gordon Brown’s Cabinet from 2008 to 2010.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ed Miliband</span> British politician (born 1969)

Edward Samuel Miliband is a British politician serving as Shadow Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero since 2021. He has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Doncaster North since 2005. Miliband was Leader of the Labour Party and Leader of the Opposition between 2010 and 2015. Alongside his brother, Foreign Secretary David Miliband, he served in the Cabinet from 2007 to 2010 under Prime Minister Gordon Brown.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pat McFadden</span> British Labour politician

Patrick Bosco McFadden is a British politician serving as Shadow Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Labour National Campaign Coordinator since September 2023. He served as Shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury between 2021 and 2023. A member of the Labour Party, he has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Wolverhampton South East since 2005.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Opposition Shadow Cabinets of the Scottish Parliament</span>

Unlike in the Parliament at Westminster where there is an Official Opposition to the government of the day, all parties in the Scottish Parliament that are not in government are all technically on the same footing as 'opposition parties'. With the Scottish National Party (SNP) currently in government, the Scottish Conservatives and Scottish Labour each have a Shadow Cabinet composed of Members of the Scottish Parliament (MSPs) and prospective parliamentary candidates.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shadow Secretary of State for Health and Social Care</span>

The Shadow Secretary of State for Health and Social Care is an office within British politics held by a member of His Majesty's Loyal Opposition. The duty of the office holder is to scrutinise the actions of the government's Secretary of State for Health and Social Care and develop alternative policies. The office holder is a member of the Shadow Cabinet and appointed by the Leader of the Opposition. It is currently held by Wes Streeting

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chris Evans (British politician)</span> Welsh Labour Co-op politician, MP for Islwyn

Christopher James Evans is a Welsh Labour Co-operative politician serving as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Islwyn since 2010, and the Shadow Minister for Defence Procurement since 2021. Evans is a published author whose work includes a biographies of former Leeds United manager Don Revie and boxer Freddie Mills.

The 2010 Labour Party leadership election was triggered on 10 May 2010 by incumbent leader Gordon Brown's resignation following the 2010 general election which resulted in a hung parliament; the first since 1974. Brown resigned as Leader of the Labour Party on 10 May and as Prime Minister on 11 May, following the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats forming a coalition government. The National Executive Committee decided the timetable for the election the result of which would be announced at the annual party conference. On 25 September 2010, Ed Miliband became the new Leader of the Labour Party, narrowly defeating his older brother, David.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Steve Reed (politician)</span> British Labour and Co-operative politician

Steven Mark Ward Reed is a British politician who has been Shadow Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs since September 2023. A member of the Labour and Co-operative Party, he has been Member of Parliament (MP) for Croydon North since a 2012 by-election.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shadow Cabinet of Ed Miliband</span> Former Shadow Cabinet of the United Kingdom

Ed Miliband became Leader of the Labour Party and Leader of the Opposition upon being elected to the former post on 25 September 2010. The election was triggered by Gordon Brown's resignation following the party's fall from power at the 2010 general election, which yielded a Conservative–Liberal Democrat Coalition. Miliband appointed his first Shadow Cabinet in October 2010, following the Labour Party Shadow Cabinet elections. These elections were the last such elections before they were abolished in 2011.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jonathan Ashworth</span> British politician

Jonathan Michael Graham Ashworth is a British politician who has served as Shadow Paymaster General since September 2023. A member of the Labour and Co-operative parties, he has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Leicester South since 2011.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jim McMahon (politician)</span> British Labour and Co-operative politician

James Ignatius O'Rourke McMahon is a British politician, who served as Shadow Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs from 2021 until 2023. He has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Oldham West and Royton since 2015 under the Labour and Co-operative banner.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shadow Cabinet of Jeremy Corbyn</span> Former Shadow Cabinet of the United Kingdom

Jeremy Corbyn assumed the position of Leader of the Opposition after being elected as leader of the Labour Party on 12 September 2015; the election was triggered by Ed Miliband's resignation following the Labour Party's electoral defeat at the 2015 general election when David Cameron formed a majority Conservative government. The usual number of junior shadow ministers were also appointed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fleur Anderson</span> British politician

Kathleen Fleur Anderson is the Member of Parliament (MP) for Putney, elected in 2019. A member of the Labour Party, she served as a member of Wandsworth London Borough Council from 2014 to 2021 and Shadow Paymaster General from December 2021 to September 2023.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shadow Cabinet of Keir Starmer</span> Current Shadow Cabinet of the United Kingdom

Keir Starmer became Leader of the Opposition in the United Kingdom after being elected as Leader of the Labour Party on 4 April 2020. He appointed his Shadow Cabinet on 5 and 6 April. Starmer has reshuffled his Shadow Cabinet five times: in June 2020, May 2021, June 2021, November 2021 and September 2023.

The frontbench of Her Majesty's Loyal Opposition in the Parliament of the United Kingdom consists of the Shadow Cabinet and other shadow ministers of the political party currently serving as the Official Opposition. From 2015 to 2020, Her Majesty's Loyal Opposition was the Labour Party, and the Leader of the Opposition was Jeremy Corbyn.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">November 2021 British shadow cabinet reshuffle</span> UK shadow cabinet reshuffle

On 29 November 2021, Keir Starmer, Leader of the Opposition in the United Kingdom, carried out a reshuffle of his shadow cabinet. The slimmed down shadow cabinet, was seen to be Starmer creating a top team in his own image.

The frontbench of His Majesty's Loyal Opposition in the Parliament of the United Kingdom consists of the Shadow Cabinet and other official shadow ministers of the political party currently serving as the Official Opposition. The Opposition front bench provide Parliamentary opposition to the British Government front bench, and is currently the Labour Party led by Keir Starmer since April 2020.

References

  1. ↑ "Miss Ann Widdecombe". UK Parliament. Retrieved 25 March 2023.
  2. ↑ "Sir Oliver Letwin". UK Parliament. Retrieved 25 March 2023.
  3. ↑ "Mr David Davis". UK Parliament. Retrieved 25 March 2023.
  4. ↑ "Mr Dominic Grieve". UK Parliament. Retrieved 25 March 2023.
  5. ↑ "Chris Grayling". UK Parliament. Retrieved 25 March 2023.
  6. ↑ "Alan Johnson". UK Parliament. Retrieved 25 March 2023.
  7. ↑ "Ed Balls". UK Parliament. Retrieved 25 March 2023.
  8. 1 2 "Yvette Cooper". UK Parliament. Retrieved 25 March 2023.
  9. ↑ "Andy Burnham". UK Parliament. Retrieved 25 March 2023.
  10. ↑ "Ms Diane Abbott". UK Parliament. Retrieved 25 March 2023.
  11. ↑ "Labour reshuffle: Diane Abbott made shadow home secretary". BBC News. 7 October 2016.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  12. ↑ "Nick Thomas-Symonds". UK Parliament. Retrieved 25 March 2023.
  13. ↑ "Labour reshuffle: Yvette Cooper becomes shadow home secretary". BBC News. 30 November 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.