| United Kingdom Deputy Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs | |
|---|---|
.svg) | |
Incumbent since 5 July 2024Vacant | |
| Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office | |
| Type | Minister of the Crown |
| Status | Secretary of State |
| Member of | |
| Reports to | The Prime Minister Foreign Secretary |
| Nominator | The Prime Minister |
| Appointer | The Monarch (on the advice of the Prime Minister) |
| Term length | At His Majesty's pleasure |
| Formation | 12 April 2024 |
| First holder | Andrew Mitchell |
| Website | Deputy Foreign Secretary |
The Deputy Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, also known as the Deputy Foreign Secretary was a minister of state position in the Government of the United Kingdom deputised to the Foreign Secretary and whose responsibility was to deputise for and represent the Foreign Secretary in the House of Commons.[1] It was created for Andrew Mitchell, who was the only holder of the office.
History
In 1947, the Labour government of Clement Attlee appointed Frank Pakenham, a member of the House of Lords, to the unofficial title of Deputy Foreign Secretary (while holding the formal title of Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster), with responsibility for the British-occupied zones in post-war Germany.[2]
In 1960, Edward Heath was appointed Lord Privy Seal by prime minister Harold MacMillan with Foreign Office responsibilities, alongside Foreign Secretary the Earl of Home.[3]
In the years following, senior Foreign Office ministers were often considered as de facto deputy to the Foreign Secretary, and occasionally granted the right to attend Cabinet, but without formally or informally holding the title of Deputy Foreign Secretary - for example, Sayeeda Warsi during the Cameron–Clegg coalition (who held the title Senior Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs).
In November 2023, former Prime Minister David Cameron was appointed Foreign Secretary and a life peer in the House of Lords as part of the November 2023 British cabinet reshuffle by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, with Andrew Mitchell, a Minister of State in the Foreign Office, nominated to act as Cameron's representative in the House of Commons and granted the right to attend cabinet.[4][5]
Following criticism that Cameron, as a member of the House of Lords, could not be scrutinised in the House of Commons to the same extent as other ministers,[6] Mitchell was formally given the title of Deputy Foreign Secretary during an April 2024 mini-reshuffle, the first time the post had been officially granted, while continuing to deputise for Cameron in the House of Commons and attend cabinet, as he had since Cameron's appointment.[7][1][8]
Following the 2024 general election, the post of Foreign Secretary reverted to being held by a member of the House of Commons in the Starmer ministry, leaving the formal post of Deputy Foreign Secretary vacant.
List of Deputy Foreign Secretaries
| Deputy Foreign Secretary | Term of office | Other ministerial portfolios held during tenure | Party | Ministry | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
Frank Pakenham 7th Earl of Longford |
17 April 1947 |
31 May 1948 |
Labour | Attlee | ||
.jpg) |
Edward Heath MP for Bexley |
14 February 1960 |
20 October 1963 |
Conservative | MacMillan I | ||
 |
Andrew Mitchell MP for Sutton Coldfield |
12 April 2024 |
5 July 2024 |
Conservative | Sunak | ||
References
- 1 2 "Deputy Foreign Secretary - GOV.UK". www.gov.uk. Retrieved 2024-06-13.
- ↑ Bowie, D. (2018). The Oxford Labour Party since 1940. In Reform and Revolt in the City of Dreaming Spires: Radical, Socialist and Communist Politics in the City of Oxford 1830-1980 (pp. 217–242). University of Westminster Press
- ↑ Boyd, Francis; Shrapnel, Norman (2005-07-18). "Sir Edward Heath". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2026-02-09.
- ↑ Brown, Thomas (21 November 2023). "Peerages awarded to former UK prime ministers". UK Parliament. Retrieved 13 June 2024.
- ↑ Smith, Benedict (2023-11-17). "David Cameron to be known as Lord Cameron of Chipping Norton". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 2024-06-13.
- ↑ "Andrew Mitchell's new job title doesn't resolve how to best scrutinise Lords ministers like David Cameron". Institute for Government. 2024-04-30. Retrieved 2024-06-13.
- ↑ "Ministerial Appointments: 12 April 2024". GOV.UK. Retrieved 2024-06-13.
- ↑ James, Rhiannon (2024-04-12). "Rishi Sunak carries out mini-reshuffle after energy minister steps down". Evening Standard. Retrieved 2024-06-13.
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