Shadow Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

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Shadow Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Official portrait of Victoria Atkins MP, 2024.jpg
Incumbent
Victoria Atkins
since 5 November 2024
Appointer Leader of the Opposition
Website The Shadow Cabinet

Shadow Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs is a position with the UK Opposition's Shadow Cabinet that deals with issues surrounding the environment and food and rural affairs; if the opposition party is elected to government, the designated person is a likely choice to become the new secretary of state for environment, food and rural affairs.

Contents

The position existed as Shadow Secretary of State for the Environment until 1997, when it was renamed Environment, Transport and the Regions to match the Government's reorganisation. It changed to its current name in 2001 for the same reason. Under Michael Howard, the arrangement was slightly different. There was a shadow environment secretary outside the Shadow Cabinet and (together with the shadow transport secretary) under the direction of the shadow secretary of state for environment and transport.

Shadow secretaries of state

Shadow Minister of Public Buildings and Works

NameTook officeLeft officePolitical partyShadow Cabinet
Tony Greenwood Anthony Greenwood.jpg 15 July 195516 November 1959 Labour Attlee
Gaitskell
Barbara Castle Barbara Castle, 1965 (cropped).jpg 16 November 195928 November 1960
Unknown28 November 196030 November 1961
Dick Mitchison 3x4.svg 30 November 196122 February 1963
Brown
Charles Pannell 3x4.svg 22 February 196316 October 1964 Wilson
Geoffrey Rippon Geoffrey Rippon (1970).jpg 16 October 196429 October 1964 Conservative Douglas-Home
James Ramsden 3x4.svg 29 October 19646 October 1965
Robin Chichester-Clark 3x4.svg 6 October 196519 June 1970 Ulster Unionist Heath
John Silkin John Silkin.png 19 June 197022 July 1970Labour Wilson II
Anthony Crosland Charles-Anthony-Raven-Crosland (3x4).jpg 22 July 197015 October 1970

Shadow Secretary of State for the Environment

NameTook officeLeft officePolitical partyShadow Cabinet
Anthony Crosland Charles-Anthony-Raven-Crosland (3x4).jpg 15 October 19705 March 1974Labour Wilson II
Geoffrey Rippon Geoffrey Rippon (1970).jpg 5 March 197411 March 1974Conservative Heath II
Margaret Thatcher Margaret Thatcher in September 1975 (cropped).jpg 11 March 19747 November 1974
Paul Channon 3x4.svg 7 November 197418 February 1975
Timothy Raison 3x4.svg 18 February 197519 November 1976 Thatcher
Michael Heseltine Lord Heseltine, Deputy Prime Minister, UK (1995-97) (10559130986) (cropped).jpg 19 November 19764 May 1979
Peter Shore 3x4.svg 4 May 197914 July 1979Labour Callaghan
Roy Hattersley Roy Hattersley 2012 cropped 2.jpg 14 July 19798 December 1980
Gerald Kaufman Kaufman.JPG 8 December 198031 October 1983 Foot
Jack Cunningham 3x4.svg 31 October 19832 November 1989 Kinnock
Bryan Gould Bryan Gould in 1992 (cropped).jpg 2 November 198918 July 1992
Chris Smith Official portrait of Lord Smith of Finsbury, 2020.jpg 18 July 199220 October 1994 Smith
Beckett
Frank Dobson Frank Dobson, Secretary of State for Health (cropped).jpg 20 October 19942 May 1997 Blair
John Gummer John Gummer 2006-03-01 (cropped).jpg 2 May 199711 June 1997Conservative Major

Shadow Secretary of State for Environment, Transport and the Regions

NameTook officeLeft officePolitical partyShadow Cabinet
Norman Fowler Official portrait of Lord Fowler crop 2.jpg 11 June 19971 June 1998Conservative Hague
Gillian Shepherd [1] Gillian Shephard official portrait (cropped).jpg 1 June 199814 June 1999
John Redwood [2] Official portrait of Rt Hon John Redwood MP crop 2.jpg 14 June 19992 February 2000
Archie Norman Archie Norman.jpg 2 February 200018 September 2001

Shadow Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

NameTook officeLeft officePolitical partyShadow Cabinet
Peter Ainsworth 3x4.svg 18 September 200123 July 2002Conservative Duncan Smith
David Lidington Official portrait of Mr David Lidington crop 2.jpg 23 July 200210 November 2003

Shadow Secretary of State for the Environment

NameTook officeLeft officePolitical partyShadow Cabinet
Caroline Spelman Official portrait of Dame Caroline Spelman crop 2.jpg 10 November 200315 March 2004Conservative Howard
Richard Ottaway Richard Ottaway MP.jpg 15 March 200410 May 2005

Shadow Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

NameTook officeLeft officePolitical partyShadow Cabinet
Oliver Letwin Oliver Letwin Official.jpg 10 May 20056 December 2005Conservative Howard
Peter Ainsworth 6 December 200519 January 2009 Cameron
Nick Herbert Nick Herbert - minister for policing and criminal justice.jpg 19 January 200911 May 2010
Hilary Benn Official portrait of Rt Hon Hilary Benn MP crop 2.jpg 11 May 20108 October 2010Labour Harman
Mary Creagh Official portrait of Mary Creagh crop 2.jpg 8 October 20107 October 2013 Miliband
Maria Eagle Official portrait of Maria Eagle MP crop 2.jpg 7 October 201314 September 2015
Harman II
Kerry McCarthy Official portrait of Kerry McCarthy.jpg 14 September 2015 26 June 2016 Corbyn
Rachael Maskell Official portrait of Rachael Maskell MP crop 2.jpg 27 June 2016 1 February 2017
Sue Hayman Sue Hayman MP - official portrait 2017 (3-to-4 crop).jpg 9 February 201712 December 2019
Luke Pollard
On leave: 30 August 2021 – 5 October 2021
Acting Shadow Secretary: Daniel Zeichner
Official portrait of Luke Pollard MP crop 2.jpg 7 January 2020 29 November 2021
Starmer
Jim McMahon Official portrait of Jim McMahon crop 2.jpg 29 November 2021 4 September 2023
Steve Reed Official portrait of Mr Steve Reed crop 2.jpg 4 September 2023 5 July 2024
Steve Barclay Steve Barclay Official Cabinet Portrait, November 2023 (cropped).jpg 8 July 20245 November 2024Conservative Sunak
Victoria Atkins Official portrait of Victoria Atkins MP crop 2, 2024.jpg 5 November 2024Incumbent Badenoch

References

  1. "Hague reshuffles shadow cabinet". BBC News. 1 June 1998. Retrieved 10 March 2013.
  2. "Lilley sacked in Hague reshuffle". The Guardian. 15 June 1999. Retrieved 10 March 2013.