First Secretary of State
United Kingdom First Secretary of State | |
---|---|
Government of the United Kingdom Office of the Prime Minister Cabinet Office | |
Style | The Right Honourable First Secretary of State |
Member of | |
Reports to | The Prime Minister |
Residence | None, may use Grace and favour residences |
Seat | Westminster, London |
Nominator | The Prime Minister |
Appointer | The British Monarch on the advice of the Prime Minister |
Term length | No fixed term |
Inaugural holder | Rab Butler |
Formation | 13 July 1962 |
Salary | £150,558 (annual, including £79,468 MP's salary)[1] |
Website | Official website |
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First Secretary of State is an honorary title occasionally used in the Government of the United Kingdom. It implies seniority over all other Secretaries of State in terms of Cabinet rank,[2] but has no specific powers or authority attached to it beyond that of any other Secretary of State. When no Deputy Prime Minister is in office, the post is de facto second in Government. If there is no First Secretary of State, the Chancellor of the Exchequer is typically de facto second in Government, although under Theresa May, David Lidington as Minister for the Cabinet Office held a higher Cabinet rank than Chancellor Philip Hammond.[clarification needed]
The title is not always in use, so there have sometimes been extended gaps between successive holders of the title. It was unused the longest in the 25 years between 1970 and 1995. After Damian Green resigned over sexual harassment allegations on 20 December 2017, no Secretary of State was appointed to fill the post until Prime Minister Boris Johnson appointed Dominic Raab on 24 July 2019 when he became Prime Minister.[3][4][5]
Responsibilities
The role has had varying responsibilities over time. The most recent responsibilities are:[6]
- Supporting the Prime Minister in the running of the Government of the United Kingdom.
- Deputising for the Prime Minister.
- Advising the Prime Minister on developing and implementing Government policy.
- Driving forward government business and implementation including through chairing and deputy chairing cabinet committees and taskforces.
- Overseeing constitutional affairs and maintaining the integrity of the Union.
- Oversight of all Cabinet Office policies.
- Answering the questions at PMQs in absence of Prime Minister.
Relationship with Deputy Prime Minister
The post of Deputy Prime Minister had been created in 1942 for Clement Attlee, the leader of the Labour Party in Winston Churchill's wartime coalition ministry. The post indicated that the holder ranked second in government, after the Prime Minister, but did not confer cabinet rank and did not pay a salary. For this reason, the Deputy Prime Minister concurrently held other offices, entitling him to a place in cabinet.
The title First Secretary of State indicated the holder's rank as a Secretary of State, with a place in cabinet. The title was created in 1962 for Deputy Prime Minister R. A. Butler, granting him a place in cabinet despite not holding a specific cabinet portfolio. Michael Heseltine and John Prescott were also relieved of their cabinet portfolios when serving as Deputy Prime Minister, and were therefore additionally appointed First Secretary of State. In 1964, Prime Minister Harold Wilson established the alternative usage, appointing a First Secretary of State among the cabinet without appointing a Deputy Prime Minister.
The two titles have only existed concurrently with different holders in one government: in David Cameron's coalition ministry of 2010–15, Nick Clegg, the leader of the Liberal Democrats, was appointed Deputy Prime Minister, while former Conservative leader William Hague was appointed First Secretary of State.
List of First Secretaries of State
Portrait | Name (Birth–Death) |
Term of office | Other ministerial offices | Party | Ministry | Ref. | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
style="background-color: Template:Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color" | | R. A. Butler[7] MP for Saffron Walden (1902–1982) |
13 July 1962 |
18 October 1963 |
Conservative | Macmillan II | [8] | ||
Title not in use | 1963–1964 | |||||||
style="background-color: Template:Labour Party (UK)/meta/color" | | George Brown MP for Belper (1914–1985) |
16 October 1964 |
11 August 1966 |
Labour | Wilson (I & II) |
[8] | ||
style="background-color: Template:Labour Party (UK)/meta/color" | | Michael Stewart MP for Fulham (1906–1990) |
11 August 1966 |
6 April 1968 |
Labour | [8] | |||
style="background-color: Template:Labour Party (UK)/meta/color" | | Barbara Castle MP for Blackburn (1910–2002) |
6 April 1968 |
19 June 1970 |
Labour | [8] | |||
Title not in use | 1970–1995 | |||||||
style="background-color: Template:Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color" | | Michael Heseltine MP for Henley (born 1933) |
20 July 1995 |
2 May 1997 |
Conservative | Major II | [9] | ||
Title not in use | 1997–2001 | |||||||
style="background-color: Template:Labour Party (UK)/meta/color" | | John Prescott MP for Kingston upon Hull East (born 1938) |
8 June 2001 |
27 June 2007 |
Labour | Blair (II & III) |
[10] | ||
Title not in use | 2007–2009 | |||||||
style="background-color: Template:Labour Party (UK)/meta/color" | | Peter Mandelson The Lord Mandelson (born 1953) |
5 June 2009 |
11 May 2010 |
Labour | Brown | |||
style="background-color: Template:Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color" | | William Hague MP for Richmond (Yorks) (born 1961) |
12 May 2010 |
8 May 2015 |
Conservative | Cameron–Clegg (Con.–L.D.) |
[11] | ||
style="background-color: Template:Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color" | | George Osborne MP for Tatton (born 1971) |
8 May 2015 |
13 July 2016 |
Conservative | Cameron II | [12] | ||
Title not in use | 2016–2017 | |||||||
style="background-color: Template:Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color" | | Damian Green MP for Ashford (born 1956) |
11 June 2017 |
20 December 2017 |
Conservative | May II | [13][14] | ||
Title not in use | 2017–2019 | |||||||
style="background-color: Template:Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color" | | Dominic Raab MP for Esher and Walton (born 1974) |
24 July 2019 |
Conservative | Johnson[disambiguation needed] | [15] |
Timeline
See also
Notes
- ^ Served as Secretary of State for Economic Affairs until August 1967
- ^ Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs from March 1968
- ^ Deputy Prime Minister from May 1997
- ^ Served as Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs until July 2014.
- ^ Served as Leader of the House of Commons from July 2014
References
- ^ https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/811042/Salaries_of_Members_of_Her_Majesty_s_Government_April_2019.pdf
- ^ Nicholas Watt (8 May 2015). "George Osborne made first secretary of state in cabinet reshuffle". The Guardian. Retrieved 8 May 2015.
- ^ "Damian Green sacked after 'misleading statements' on porn claims". BBC News. 21 December 2017.
- ^ "Damian Green sacked over porn cover-up as Theresa May suffers third Cabinet departure in two months". The Telegraph.
- ^ "Dominic Raab appointed UK foreign secretary, first secretary of state: statement". Reuters. London. 25 July 2019. Retrieved 26 July 2019.
- ^ "First Secretary of State - GOV.UK". www.gov.uk. Retrieved 2017-07-25.
- ^ Howard, Anthony (February 7, 2013). "RAB: The Life of R.A. Butler". A&C Black.
- ^ a b c d David Butler and Gareth Butler, British Political Facts 1900–1994 (7th edn, Macmillan 1994) 62.
- ^ "Lord Heseltine". UK Parliament. Retrieved 21 December 2017.
- ^ "Lord Prescott". UK Parliament. Retrieved 21 December 2017.
- ^ "Lord Hague of Richmond". UK Parliament. Retrieved 21 December 2017.
- ^ "Rt Hon George Osborne". UK Parliament. Retrieved 21 December 2017.
- ^ "Rt Hon Damian Green MP". UK Parliament. Retrieved 21 December 2017.
- ^ Stewart, Heather. "Damian Green sacked as first secretary of state after porn allegations". The Guardian. Retrieved 31 December 2017.
- ^ https://www.reuters.com/article/britain-eu-leader-raab/dominic-raab-appointed-uk-foreign-secretary-first-secretary-of-state-statement-idUSS8N23H00F