Louise Haigh has been appointed as the most senior minister in Andy Burnham's first cabinet, taking on the roles of first secretary of state, chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and minister for the Cabinet Office.
Haigh, who returns to government after resigning as transport secretary a few months into Keir Starmer’s premiership in November 2024, is the first minister to hold the role of first secretary of state since Dominic Raab, who held the role from 2019 to 2021 alongside being foreign secretary. The role indicates authority ahead of all other secretaries of state.
In taking over from Darren Jones and Nick Thomas-Symonds, who were respectively chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and minister for the Cabinet Office, she also becomes the most senior minister in the Cabinet Office. Haigh's responsibilities will include oversight of civil service and state reform and coordination and delivery of cross-government priorities. Jones's delivery-focused role as chief secretary to the prime minister has not been filled.
Burnham, who became prime minister on Monday, has changed the vast majority of the cabinet roles Starmer had in place, laregly picking his own team.
He has appointed John Healey as chancellor. Healey quit as defence secretary last month, criticising the Treasury for being "unwilling" to commit the resources "that the nation needs to defend the country". He has half of decade of experience at the Treasury, having been economic secretary and then financial secretary to the Treasury from 2002 to 2007.
Other big cabinet moves include Ed Miliband swapping his role as energy secretary to become foreign secretary in place of Yvette Cooper, who moves to the position of health secretary. Cooper replaces James Murray, who stepped into the role last month after Wes Streeting resigned over what he described as a "vacuum" instead of "vision" under Starmer's leadership. Streeting has been named as defence secretary, taking over from Dan Jarvis.
There's also a return to the cabinet for Angela Rayner who, in replacing the departing Steve Reed as housing secretary, takes back her old role. Another big change sees Labour deputy leader Lucy Powell take over as education secretary from Bridget Phillipson, who keeps her minister for women and equalities brief and remains in the cabinet.
Shabana Mahmood remains as home secretary, Pat McFadden retains his role as work and pensions secretary and Heidi Alexander stays as transport secretary. Lisa Nandy also keeps her role as culture secretary but takes on the digital brief, with the abolishment of DSIT meaning the 'D' in DCMS becomes Digital once again.
Jonathan Reynolds, who has been chief whip since September, returns to his previous position of business secretary, replacing Peter Kyle. He will also have an expanded portfolio, with the innovation and science briefs joining together with business and trade.
Anneliese Midgley takes over from Reynolds as chief whip in her first ministerial role.
Angela Eagle is the new environmental secretary, a promotion from her previous role as security minister. She replaces Emma Reynolds, who has become chief secretary to the Treasury.
Miatta Fahnbulleh, who was a junior minister in MHCLG under Starmer before resigning in May, takes over from Ed Miliband as energy secretary. Alex Norris, a former border security and asylum minister, has been named as justice secretary, replacing Lammy.
Here is the full list of Burnham's cabinet announcements so far:
- Louise Haigh – first secretary of state, chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and minister for the Cabinet Office
- John Healey – chancellor of the exchequer
- Shabana Mahmood – home secretary (unchanged)
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Ed Miliband – foreign, commonwealth and development affairs secretary
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Yvette Cooper – health and social care secretary
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Wes Streeting – defence secretary
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Pat McFadden – work and pensions secretary (unchanged)
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Angela Rayner – housing, communities and local government secretary
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Jonathan Reynolds – business, innovation, science and trade secretary
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Lisa Nandy – digital, culture, media and sport secretary
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Lucy Powell – education secretary
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Angela Eagle – environment, food and rural affairs secretary
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Miatta Fahnbulleh – energy and net zero secretary
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Alex Norris – lord chancellor and justice secretary
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Heidi Alexander – transport secretary (unchanged)
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Anneliese Midgley – chief whip
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Bridget Phillipson – minister for women and equalities, reporting to the prime minister
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Douglas Alexander – Scottish secretary (unchanged)
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Stephen Kinnock – Welsh secretary
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Sir Chris Bryant – Northern Ireland secretary
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Ellie Reeves – attorney general
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Matthew Pennycook – minister of state in the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (unchanged)
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Emma Reynolds – chief secretary to the Treasury
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Kanishka Narayan – minister for artificial intelligence, jointly in the Cabinet Office and DBIST
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Hamish Falconer – minister for intergovernmental relations and European relations, jointly in the Cabinet Office and the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office
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Sir Alan Campbell – lord president of the council and leader of the House of Commons (unchanged)
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Baroness Angela Smith – lord privy seal and leader of the House of Lords (unchanged).
It has also been confirmed that Patrick Vallance has left his role as science minister, and James Timpson has left his position as prisons minister.