The Great Offices of State are senior offices in the

UK government His Majesty's Government, abbreviated to HM Government or otherwise UK Government, is the central government, central executive authority of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

. They are the

Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

, the

Chancellor of the Exchequer The chancellor of the exchequer, often abbreviated to chancellor, is a senior minister of the Crown within the Government of the United Kingdom, and the head of HM Treasury, His Majesty's Treasury. As one of the four Great Offices of State, t ...

, the Foreign Secretary and the

Home Secretary The secretary of state for the Home Department, more commonly known as the home secretary, is a senior minister of the Crown in the Government of the United Kingdom and the head of the Home Office. The position is a Great Office of State, maki ...

or, alternatively, three of those offices excluding the prime minister.

Current

History

The Great Offices of State are derived from the most senior positions in the Royal Household – the

Great Officers of State Government in medieval monarchies generally comprised the king's companions, later becoming the royal household, from which the officers of state arose. These officers initially had household and governmental duties. Later some of these offic ...

. These eventually became hereditary and honorary titles, while the substantive duties of the Officers passed to individuals who were appointed on behalf of the Crown.

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 ...

is the first and, to date, only person to have served in all four positions. According to a

YouGov YouGov plc is a international Internet-based market research and data analytics firm headquartered in the UK with operations in Europe, North America, the Middle East, and Asia-Pacific. History 2000–2010 Stephan Shakespeare and Nadhim ...

poll conducted in 2017, the British public view the three most senior Cabinet ministers as the

Chancellor Chancellor () is a title of various official positions in the governments of many countries. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the (lattice work screens) of a basilica (court hall), which separa ...

, the

Secretary of State for Health and Social Care The secretary of state for health and social care, also referred to as the health secretary, is a Secretary of State (United Kingdom), secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, responsible for the work of the Departmen ...

, and the

Secretary of State for Defence The secretary of state for defence, also known as the defence secretary, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, with responsibility for the Ministry of Defence. As a senior minister, the incumbent is a member of the ...

, with the office of

coming in fourth place, and that of Foreign Secretary in just ninth place, preceded by the

Secretary of State for Work and Pensions The secretary of state for work and pensions, also referred to as the work and pensions secretary, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, with overall responsibility for the business of the Department for Work and P ...

and followed by the

Secretary of State for International Trade The Secretary of State for International Trade, also referred to as the International Trade Secretary, was a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, with overall responsibility for the business of the Department for Intern ...

. The office of

Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport The secretary of state for culture, media and sport, also referred to as the culture secretary, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, with overall responsibility for strategy and policy across the Department for Cultu ...

was viewed as least important, with just 3% of respondents saying they viewed it as one of the most important positions. The

Truss ministry The Truss ministry began on 6 September 2022 when Liz Truss was invited by Queen Elizabeth II—two days before the monarch's death—to succeed Boris Johnson as prime minister of the United Kingdom. Johnson had resigned as leader of the ...

formed on 6 September 2022 and initially had no white men holding positions in the Great Offices of State, for the first time in British political history. This remained the case for just 38 days until the appointment of

Jeremy Hunt Sir Jeremy Richard Streynsham Hunt (born 1 November 1966) is a British politician who served as Chancellor of the Exchequer from 2022 to 2024 and Foreign Secretary from 2018 to 2019, having previously served as Secretary of State for Health a ...

as Chancellor of the Exchequer on 14 October 2022, replacing

Kwasi Kwarteng Akwasi Addo Alfred Kwarteng (born 26 May 1975) is a British politician who served as the Chancellor of the Exchequer from September to October 2022 under Liz Truss and the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy from 202 ...

who had been the first black Chancellor. Five days later on 19 October 2022,

Grant Shapps Sir Grant Shapps (born 14 September 1968) is a British politician who served as Secretary of State for Defence from August 2023 to July 2024. Shapps previously served in various Cabinet of the United Kingdom, cabinet posts, including Chairman of ...

was appointed Home Secretary, replacing

Suella Braverman Sue-Ellen Cassiana "Suella" Braverman (; ''née'' Fernandes; born 3 April 1980) is a British politician and barrister who served as Home Secretary from 6 September 2022 to 19 October 2022, and again from 25 October 2022 to 13 November 2023. A ...

, although Braverman was then reappointed by incoming Prime Minister

Rishi Sunak Rishi Sunak (born 12 May 1980) is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party from 2022 to 2024. Following his defeat to Keir Starmer's La ...

just six days later. Following Sunak's reshuffle in November 2023, this marks the first instance since 2010, when the Conservatives assumed office, where no women occupy a Great Office of State. It also marked the first 21st century instance of a former prime minister holding a Great Office of State, with

David Cameron David William Donald Cameron, Baron Cameron of Chipping Norton (born 9 October 1966) is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2010 to 2016. Until 2015, he led the first coalition government in the UK s ...

being appointed as Foreign Secretary in the

Sunak ministry The Sunak ministry began on 25 October 2022 when Rishi Sunak was invited by King Charles III to succeed Liz Truss as prime minister of the United Kingdom. October 2022 United Kingdom government crisis, Truss resigned as Leader of the Conserv ...

, becoming the first former prime minister to serve in a ministerial post since

Alec Douglas-Home Alexander Frederick Douglas-Home, Baron Home of the Hirsel ( ; 2 July 1903 – 9 October 1995), known as Lord Dunglass from 1918 to 1951 and the Earl of Home from 1951 to 1963, was a British statesman and Conservative Party (UK), Conservative ...

in 1970−1974. Following the general election on 4 July, Prime Minister

Sir Keir Starmer Sir Keir Rodney Starmer (born 2 September 1962) is a British politician and lawyer who has served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom since 2024 and as Leader of the Labour Party (UK), Leader of the Labour Party since 2020. He previously ...

appointed

Rachel Reeves Rachel Jane Reeves (born 13 February 1979) is a British politician who has served as Chancellor of the Exchequer since July 2024. A member of the Labour Party, she has been Member of Parliament (MP) for Leeds West and Pudsey, formerly Leed ...

as Chancellor of the Exchequer, thus making Reeves the first female Chancellor in the 708 year history of

HM Treasury His Majesty's Treasury (HM Treasury or HMT), and informally referred to as the Treasury, is the Government of the United Kingdom’s economic and finance ministry. The Treasury is responsible for public spending, financial services policy, Tax ...

. Starmer appointed women to a record half of the Cabinet, including three of the five top positions in the British government. Besides Reeves, this includes

Angela Rayner Angela Rayner (' Bowen; born 28 March 1980) is a British politician who has served as Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government since 2024 United Kingdom general election, Jul ...

Deputy Prime Minister A deputy prime minister or vice prime minister is, in some countries, a Minister (government), government minister who can take the position of acting prime minister when the prime minister is temporarily absent. The position is often likened to th ...

and

Yvette Cooper Yvette Cooper (born 20 March 1969) is a British politician who has served as Home Secretary since July 2024. A member of the Labour Party (UK), Labour Party, Cooper has been Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), member of parliament (MP) for Po ...

References

{{Shadow Great Officers of State Ministerial offices in the United Kingdom

Current

History

See also

References