Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
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| United Kingdom Secretary of State for Work and Pensions | |
|---|---|
| File:Coat of arms of the United Kingdom (2022, lesser arms).svg | |
since 5 July 2024 | |
| Department for Work and Pensions | |
| Style | Work and Pensions Secretary (informal) The Right Honourable (within the UK and Commonwealth) |
| Type | Minister of the Crown |
| Status | Secretary of State |
| Member of | |
| Reports to | The Prime Minister |
| Seat | Westminster |
| Nominator | The Prime Minister |
| Appointer | The Monarch (on the advice of the Prime Minister) |
| Term length | At His Majesty's Pleasure |
| Formation |
|
| First holder | George Barnes (as Minister for Pensions) |
| Deputy | Minister of State for Employment |
| Salary | £159,038 per annum (2022)[1] (including £86,584 MP salary)[2] |
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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 Pensions.[3] The incumbent is a member of the Cabinet of the United Kingdom. The office holder works alongside the other work and pensions ministers. The corresponding shadow minister is the shadow secretary of state for work and pensions and the shadow secretary of state for the future of work. The performance of the secretary of state is also scrutinised by the Work and Pensions Select Committee. The office is currently held by Liz Kendall.
Responsibilities
Corresponding to what is generally known as a labour minister in many other countries, the work and pensions secretary's remit includes:
- Support people of working age
- Oversight of employers and pensions
- Fiscal Consolidation
- Providing support for disability
- Support for families and children[4]
History
It was created on 8 June 2001 by the merger of the employment division of the Department for Education and Employment and the Department of Social Security.[5] The Ministry of Pensions was created in 1916 to handle the payment of war pensions to former members of the Armed Forces and their dependants. In 1944 a separate Ministry of National Insurance (titled the Ministry of Social Insurance until 17 November 1944) was formed; the two merged in 1953 as the Ministry of Pensions and National Insurance.[5] In 1966 the Ministry was renamed the Ministry of Social Security, but this was short-lived, as the ministry merged with the Ministry of Health in 1968 to form the Department of Health and Social Security. Confusingly, the secretary of state responsible for this department was titled the Secretary of State for Social Services. The department was de-merged in 1988, creating the separate Department of Health and Department of Social Security.
List of ministers and secretaries of state
Colour key (for political parties):
Labour / Conservative / Liberal / National Labour / National Independent
Minister of Pensions (1916–1953)
Minister of Social Insurance/National Insurance (1944–1953)
| Minister | Term of office | Political party | Cabinet | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| File:William Jowitt.png | William Jowitt | 8 October 1944 | 23 May 1945 | Labour | Churchill War | |
| File:Blank.png | Leslie Hore-Belisha | 25 May 1945 | 26 July 1945 | National Independent | Churchill Caretaker | |
| File:Blank.png | Jim Griffiths | 4 August 1945 | 28 February 1950 | Labour | Attlee | |
| File:Blank.png | Edith Summerskill | 28 February 1950 | 26 October 1951 | Labour | ||
| File:Blank.png | Osbert Peake | 31 October 1951 | 3 September 1953 | Conservative | Churchill III | |
| Posts of Minister of Pensions and Minister of National Insurance merged in 1953. | ||||||
Minister of Pensions and National Insurance (1953–1966)
| Minister | Term of office | Political party | Cabinet | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| File:Blank.png | Osbert Peake | 3 September 1953 | 20 December 1955 | Conservative | Churchill III | |
| Eden | ||||||
| File:Blank.png | John Boyd-Carpenter | 20 December 1955 | 16 July 1962 | Conservative | ||
| Macmillan I | ||||||
| Macmillan II | ||||||
| File:Blank.png | Niall Macpherson | 16 July 1962 | 21 October 1963 | Conservative | ||
| File:Blank.png | Richard Wood | 21 October 1963 | 16 October 1964 | Conservative | Douglas-Home | |
| Margaret Herbison | 18 October 1964 | 6 August 1966 | Labour | Wilson I | ||
Minister of Social Security (1966–1968)
| Minister | Term of office | Political party | Cabinet | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Margaret Herbison | 6 August 1966 | 26 July 1967 | Labour | Wilson II | ||
| File:Blank.png | Judith Hart | 26 July 1967 | 1 November 1968 | Labour | ||
Secretary of State for Social Services (1968–1988)
| Secretary of State | Term of office | Political party | Cabinet | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| File:Crossland MP.jpg | Richard Crossman | 1 November 1968 | 19 June 1970 | Labour | Wilson II | |
| Keith Joseph | 20 June 1970 | 4 March 1974 | Conservative | Heath | ||
| File:Mme Barbara Castle, Ministre britannique du développement outre-mer.jpg | Barbara Castle | 5 March 1974 | 8 April 1976 | Labour | Wilson III | |
| Wilson IV | ||||||
| File:David Ennals.jpg | David Ennals | 8 April 1976 | 4 May 1979 | Labour | Callaghan | |
| Patrick Jenkin[6] | 5 May 1979 | 13 September 1981 | Conservative | Thatcher I | ||
| File:Official portrait of Lord Fowler crop 2.jpg | Norman Fowler[7] | 14 September 1981 | 13 June 1987 | Conservative | Thatcher II | |
| File:Mr John Moore M.P. addressing the Annual LSE Society Dinner, 5th June, 1985.jpg | John Moore[8] | 13 June 1987 | 24 July 1988 | Conservative | Thatcher III | |
| Post split into the Secretary of State for Social Security and the Secretary of State for Health in 1988. | ||||||
Secretary of State for Social Security (1988–2001)
| Secretary of State | Term of office | Political party | Cabinet | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| File:Mr John Moore M.P. addressing the Annual LSE Society Dinner, 5th June, 1985.jpg | John Moore[8] | 25 July 1988 | 22 July 1989 | Conservative | Thatcher III | |
| File:Tony Newton 1995.png | Tony Newton[9] | 23 July 1989 | 9 April 1992 | Conservative | ||
| Major I | ||||||
| File:Official portrait of Lord Lilley, 2022.jpg | Peter Lilley[10] | 10 April 1992 | 1 May 1997 | Conservative | Major II | |
| File:Official portrait of Rt Hon Harriet Harman QC MP crop 2.jpg | Harriet Harman[11] | 1 May 1997 | 27 July 1998 | Labour | Blair I | |
| File:AlistairDarlingABr cropped.jpg | Alistair Darling[12] | 27 July 1998 | 8 June 2001 | Labour | ||
Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (2001–present)
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* Incumbent's length of term last updated: 26 January 2025.
Timeline
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See also
- Secretary of State for Employment
- Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Pensions and Financial Inclusion
References
- ↑ "Salaries of Members of His Majesty's Government – Financial Year 2022–23" (PDF). 15 December 2022.
- ↑ "Pay and expenses for MPs". parliament.uk. Retrieved 15 December 2022.
- ↑ "Secretary of State for Work and Pensions". gov.uk. Retrieved 30 June 2021.
- ↑ "Secretary of State for Work and Pensions - GOV.UK".
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Department for Work and Pensions. "A century of support: Department for Work and Pensions turns 100 years old". Department for Work and Pensions. Retrieved 29 May 2019.
- ↑ "Lord Jenkin of Roding". UK Parliament. Retrieved 10 September 2021.
- ↑ "Lord Fowler". UK Parliament. Retrieved 10 September 2021.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 "Lord Moore of Lower Marsh". UK Parliament. Retrieved 10 September 2021.
- ↑ "Lord Newton of Braintree". UK Parliament. Retrieved 10 September 2021.
- ↑ "Lord Lilley". UK Parliament. Retrieved 10 September 2021.
- ↑ "Rt Hon Harriet Harman QC MP". UK Parliament. Retrieved 10 September 2021.
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 "Lord Darling of Roulanish". UK Parliament. Retrieved 10 September 2021.
- ↑ "Rt Hon Andrew Smith". UK Parliament. Retrieved 10 September 2021.
- ↑ "Rt Hon Alan Johnson". UK Parliament. Retrieved 10 September 2021.
- ↑ "Lord Blunkett". UK Parliament. Retrieved 10 September 2021.
- ↑ "Lord Hutton of Furness". UK Parliament. Retrieved 10 September 2021.
- ↑ "Lord Hain". UK Parliament. Retrieved 31 August 2021.
- ↑ "James Purnell". UK Parliament. Retrieved 31 August 2021.
- ↑ "Rt Hon Yvette Cooper MP". UK Parliament. Retrieved 31 August 2021.
- ↑ "Rt Hon Sir Iain Duncan Smith MP". UK Parliament. Retrieved 31 August 2021.
- ↑ "Rt Hon Stephen Crabb MP". UK Parliament. Retrieved 31 August 2021.
- ↑ "Rt Hon Damian Green MP". UK Parliament. Retrieved 31 August 2021.
- ↑ "Rt Hon David Gauke". UK Parliament. Retrieved 31 August 2021.
- ↑ "Rt Hon Esther McVey MP". UK Parliament. Retrieved 31 August 2021.
- ↑ "Rt Hon Amber Rudd". UK Parliament. Retrieved 31 August 2021.
- ↑ "Rt Hon Dr Thérèse Coffey MP". UK Parliament. Retrieved 31 August 2021.
- ↑ "Chloe Smith MP". Retrieved 6 September 2022.