Elections to the Labour Party's Shadow Cabinet (more formally, its "Parliamentary Committee") occurred on 14 June 1979, following the Party's fall from power at the May general election that year. In addition to the 12 members elected, the

Leader Leadership, is defined as the ability of an individual, group, or organization to "", influence, or guide other individuals, teams, or organizations. "Leadership" is a contested term. Specialist literature debates various viewpoints on the co ...

(

James Callaghan Leonard James Callaghan, Baron Callaghan of Cardiff ( ; 27 March 191226 March 2005) was a British statesman and Labour Party (UK), Labour Party politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1976 to 1979 and Leader of the L ...

Deputy Leader A deputy leader (in Scottish English, sometimes depute leader) in the Westminster system is the second-in-command of a political party, behind the party leader. Deputy leaders often become Deputy prime minister when their parties are elected to go ...

(

Michael Foot Michael Mackintosh Foot (23 July 19133 March 2010) was a British politician who was Leader of the Labour Party (UK), Leader of the Labour Party and Leader of the Opposition (United Kingdom), Leader of the Opposition from 1980 to 1983. Foot beg ...

Labour Chief Whip A chief whip of the Labour Party oversees the whipping system in the Labour Party, and is responsible for ensuring that Labour members of Parliament (MPs) or members of the House of Lords attend and vote in the Parliament of the United Kingdo ...

(

Michael Cocks Michael Francis Lovell Cocks, Baron Cocks of Hartcliffe, PC (19 August 1929 – 26 March 2001) was a British Labour Party politician. He was the member of parliament for Bristol South from 1970 to 1987, and was the Labour Party's chief whip f ...

), Labour Leader in the House of Lords ( Lord Peart), and Chairman of the

Parliamentary Labour Party The Parliamentary Labour Party (PLP) is the parliamentary group of the Labour Party in the British House of Commons. The group comprises the Labour members of parliament as a collective body. Commentators on the British Constitution sometimes ...

(

Fred Willey Frederick Thomas Willey (13 November 1910 – 13 December 1987) was a British Labour Party politician. He was a Member of Parliament (MP) representing a Sunderland constituency for 38 years, from 1945 to 1983. Early life Willey was educated a ...

) were automatically members.

Tony Benn Anthony Neil Wedgwood Benn (3 April 1925 – 14 March 2014), known between 1960 and 1963 as Viscount Stansgate, was a British Labour Party (UK), Labour Party politician and political activist who served as a Cabinet of the United Kingdom, Cabine ...

, who had been

Secretary of State for Energy A secretary, administrative assistant, executive assistant, personal secretary, or other similar titles is an individual whose work consists of supporting management, including executives, using a variety of project management, program evalua ...

in the outgoing

Callaghan ministry Callaghan most commonly refers to O'Callaghan, an Anglicized Irish surname. Callaghan may also refer to: People * Aaron Callaghan (born 1966), Irish footballer with Crewe Alexandra and Crusaders * Sir Alfred John Callaghan (1865–1940), Irish ...

did not seek election to the Shadow Cabinet as he opted to return to the back benches "for the time being". The 12 winners of the election are listed below:

References

{{John Smith

1979 Events January * January 1 ** United Nations Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim heralds the start of the ''International Year of the Child''. Many musicians donate to the ''Music for UNICEF Concert'' fund, among them ABBA, who write the song ...

Labour Party Shadow Cabinet election Labour Party (UK) Shadow Cabinet election