The secretary of state for defence, also known as the defence secretary, is a secretary of state in the

Government of the United Kingdom 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.

, with responsibility for the Ministry of Defence. As a senior minister, the incumbent is a member of the Cabinet of the United Kingdom. The post of secretary of state for defence was created on 1 April 1964, replacing the positions of

minister of defence A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and military forces, found in states where the government is divid ...

, first lord of the admiralty, secretary of state for war, and secretary of state for air, while the individual offices of the

British Armed Forces The British Armed Forces are the unified military, military forces responsible for the defence of the United Kingdom, its British Overseas Territories, Overseas Territories and the Crown Dependencies. They also promote the UK's wider interests ...

were abolished and their functions transferred to the Ministry of Defence. In 2019, Penny Mordaunt became the UK's first female defence secretary. The secretary of state is supported by the other ministers in the Defence Ministerial Team and the MOD permanent secretary. The corresponding shadow minister is the shadow secretary of state for defence, and the secretary of state is also scrutinised by the Defence Select Committee. The current secretary of state for defence is John Healey, who was appointed on 5 July 2024 following the

2024 United Kingdom general election The 2024 United Kingdom general election was held on Thursday, 4 July 2024 to elect all 650 members of the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons. The opposition Labour Party (UK), Labour Party, led by Keir Starmer, won a lan ...

Responsibilities

In contrast to what is generally known as a defence minister in many other countries, the Defence Secretary's remit includes: *Strategic military and defensive operations. The postholder is a member of the

National Security Council A national security council (NSC) is usually an executive branch governmental body responsible for coordinating policy on national security issues and advising chief executives on matters related to national security. An NSC is often headed by a n ...

, and chair of the Defence Council, to which the monarch has given the power to command the Armed Forces. *Oversight of Defence Intelligence *Relations with international partnerships, including

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO ; , OTAN), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental organization, intergovernmental Transnationalism, transnational military alliance of 32 Member states of NATO, member s ...

*Defence policy ( Trident nuclear weapons programme), resourcing and planning *Communications on defence

History

Minister for Co-ordination of Defence (1936–1940)

The position of

minister for co-ordination of defence The Minister for Co-ordination of Defence was a Cabinet of the United Kingdom, British Cabinet-level position established in 1936 to oversee and co-ordinate the rearmament of United Kingdom, Britain's defences. It was abolished in 1940. History T ...

was a British Cabinet-level position established in 1936 to oversee and co-ordinate the rearmament of Britain's defences. It was established by the prime minister, Stanley Baldwin, in response to criticism that Britain's armed forces were understrength compared to those of

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...

. When the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

broke out, the new prime minister

Neville Chamberlain Arthur Neville Chamberlain (; 18 March 18699 November 1940) was a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from May 1937 to May 1940 and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party from ...

formed a small War Cabinet and it was expected that the minister would serve as a spokesperson for the three service ministers, the secretary of state for war, the first lord of the admiralty and the secretary of state for air; however, political considerations resulted in all three posts being included in the Cabinet, and this role proved increasingly redundant. In April 1940 the position was formally wound up and the functions transferred to other ministers.

Minister of Defence (1940–1964)

The post of

was responsible for co-ordination of defence and security from its creation in 1940 until its abolition in 1964. The post was a Cabinet level post and generally ranked above the three service ministers, some of whom, however, continued to also serve in Cabinet. On his appointment as prime minister in May 1940,

Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 1874 – 24 January 1965) was a British statesman, military officer, and writer who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1940 to 1945 (Winston Churchill in the Second World War, ...

created for himself the new post of minister of defence. The post was created in response to previous criticism that there had been no clear single minister in charge of the prosecution of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. In 1946, the post became the only cabinet-level post representing the military, with the three service ministers – the secretary of state for war, the first lord of the admiralty, and the secretary of state for air, now formally subordinated to the minister of defence.

Secretary of State for Defence (1964–present)

The post was created in 1964 as successor to the posts of minister for coordination of defence and minister of defence. It replaced the positions of first lord of the admiralty, secretary of state for war and secretary of state for air, as the Admiralty, War Office and

Air Ministry The Air Ministry was a department of the Government of the United Kingdom with the responsibility of managing the affairs of the Royal Air Force and civil aviation that existed from 1918 to 1964. It was under the political authority of the ...

were merged into the Ministry of Defence (the secretary of state for war had already ceased to be a cabinet position in 1946, with the creation of the cabinet-level

Secretaries of state for defence (1964–present)

Timeline

References

External links

www.gov.uk/mod
{{DEFAULTSORT:Secretary Of State For Defence Defence, Secretary of State for Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom) Ministerial offices in the United Kingdom 1964 establishments in the United Kingdom

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...