First Secretary of State

2016-10-28T16:06:53Z

Repmax:

{{Infobox Political post
| post = First Secretary
| body = State
| nativename =
| insignia = Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom (HM Government).svg
| insigniacaption = Arms of [[Her Majesty's Government]]
| flag = Flag of the United Kingdom.svg
| flagcaption = [[Flag of the United Kingdom]]
| department =
| image = Philip_Hammond_2016.jpg
| alt =
| incumbent = [[Philip Hammond]]
|incumbentsince = 18 October 2016 <ref name="Philip Hammond appointed First Secretary of State in October 2016">{{cite web|last1=Government|first1=UK|title=List of Ministerial Responsibilities, October 2016|url=https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/560922/ministerial_responsibilities_list_18_10_2016.pdf|website=gov.uk|accessdate=28 October 2016}}</ref>
| style = [[The Right Honourable]]
| residence =
| nominator = [[Prime Minister of the United Kingdom]]
| nominatorpost =
| appointer = [[Elizabeth II]]
| appointerpost = [[Monarchy of the United Kingdom|the monarch]], on the advice of the [[Prime Minister of the United Kingdom|Prime Minister]]
| termlength = No fixed term
| inaugural = [[Rab Butler]]
| formation = 13 July 1962
| last =
| abolished =
| succession =
| deputy =
| salary =
| website =
}}
{{PoliticsUK}}

'''First Secretary of State''' is an [[title of honor|honorific]] title occasionally used within the [[Government of the United Kingdom]]. The title, which implies seniority over all other [[Secretary of State (United Kingdom)|Secretaries of State]],<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2015/may/08/george-osborne-made-first-secretary-of-state-in-cabinet-reshuffle|title=George Osborne made first secretary of state in cabinet reshuffle|date=8 May 2015 |author=Nicholas Watt|newspaper=[[The Guardian]] |access-date=8 May 2015 }}</ref> has no specific powers or authority attached to it beyond that of any other Secretary of State.

The title is not always in use, and there have been lengthy periods between successive holders of the title.

==Relationship with Deputy Prime Minister==
The post of [[Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom|Deputy Prime Minister]] had been created in 1942 for [[Clement Attlee]], the leader of the Labour Party in [[Winston Churchill]]'s [[Churchill war ministry|wartime coalition ministry]]. The post indicated that the holder ranked second in government, after the Prime Minister, but did not confer cabinet rank and did not pay a salary. For this reason, the Deputy Prime Minister concurrently held other offices, entitling him to a place in cabinet.

The title ''First Secretary of State'' indicated the holder's rank as a Secretary of State, with a place in cabinet. The title was created in 1962 for Deputy Prime Minister [[Rab Butler|R. A. Butler]], granting him a place in cabinet despite not holding a specific cabinet portfolio. [[Michael Heseltine]] and [[John Prescott]] were also relieved of their cabinet portfolios when serving as Deputy Prime Minister, and were therefore additionally appointed First Secretary of State. In 1964, Prime Minister [[Harold Wilson]] established the alternative usage, appointing a First Secretary of State among the cabinet without appointing a Deputy Prime Minister.

The two titles have only existed concurrently with different holders in one government: in [[David Cameron]]'s [[First Cameron ministry|coalition ministry of 2010–15]], [[Nick Clegg]], the leader of the [[Liberal Democrats]], was appointed Deputy Prime Minister, and [[William Hague]] was appointed First Secretary of State.

==Incumbent holder==
The incumbent First Secretary of State is [[Philip Hammond]] in the government of [[Theresa May]]. Hammond had served as Chancellor of the Exchequer since May's appointment as Prime Minister in July 2016, being given the additional role of First Secretary of State in October. In the July to October 2016 period, the role of First Secretary of State had been left vacant.

==List of First Secretaries of State==
{| class="toccolours" style="font-size:88%"
! Colour key {{nobold|(for political parties)}}
|-
|{{colbegin|2}}
{{legend|{{Labour Party (UK)/meta/color}}|[[Labour Party (UK)|Labour]]|border=1px solid #AAAAAA}}
{{legend|{{Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color}}|[[Conservative Party (UK)|Conservative]]|border=1px solid #AAAAAA}}
{{colend}}
|}
{| class="wikitable"
! colspan=2 | Name
! Portrait
! colspan=2 | Term of office
! Concurrent office(s)
! Political party (Party position)
! colspan=2 | Prime Minister
|-
! style="background-color: {{Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color}}" |
| [[Rab Butler]]<ref>{{cite web |last=Howard |first=Anthony |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EWhZRJI-yOgC&pg=PT255&lpg=PT255&dq=%22first+secretary+of+state%22+r.a.+butler&source=bl&ots=UDXtp2lAhC&sig=Umullj7prm50ucyp7_nHDNwwnDs&hl=en&sa=X&ei=1wRNVYvCOerksATNn4H4Cw&ved=0CDgQ6AEwBA#v=onepage&q=%22first%20secretary%20of%20state%22%20r.a.%20butler&f=false |title=RAB: The Life of R.A. Butler |date=February 7, 2013 |work=A&C Black}}</ref>
| [[File:Rab Butler.png|60px]]
| [[Night of the Long Knives (1962)|13 July 1962]]
| 18 October 1963
| [[Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom|Deputy Prime Minister]]
| [[Conservative Party (UK)|Conservative]]
! style="background-color: {{Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color}}" |
| [[Harold Macmillan]]
|-
| colspan=3 | ''Office not in use''
| colspan=2 align=center | 1963–1964
| colspan=2 |
! style="background-color: {{Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color}}" |
| [[Alec Douglas-Home]]
|-
! style="background-color: {{Labour Party (UK)/meta/color}}" |
| [[George Brown, Baron George-Brown|George Brown]]
| [[File:George Brown, 1967.jpg|60px]]
| 16 October 1964
| 11 August 1966
| [[Secretary of State for Economic Affairs|Economic Secretary]]
| [[Labour Party (UK)|Labour]] ([[Deputy Leader of the Labour Party (UK)|Deputy Leader]])
! rowspan=3 style="background-color: {{Labour Party (UK)/meta/color}}" |
| rowspan=3| [[Harold Wilson]]
|-
! style="background-color: {{Labour Party (UK)/meta/color}}" |
| [[Michael Stewart, Baron Stewart of Fulham|Michael Stewart]]
| [[File:Michael Stewart.jpg|60px]]
| 11 August 1966
| 6 April 1968
| Economic Secretary ''(until August 1967)'' [[Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs|Foreign Secretary]] ''(from March 1968)''
| Labour
|-
! style="background-color: {{Labour Party (UK)/meta/color}}" |
| [[Barbara Castle, Baroness Castle of Blackburn|Barbara Castle]]
| [[File:Mme Barbara Castle, Ministre britannique du développement outre-mer.jpg|60px]]
| 6 April 1968
| 19 June 1970
| [[Secretary of State for Employment|Employment and Productivity Secretary]]
| Labour
|-
| rowspan=5 colspan=3 | ''Office not in use''
| rowspan=5 colspan=2 align=center | 1970–1995
| rowspan=5 colspan=2 |
! style="background-color: {{Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color}}" |
| [[Edward Heath]]
|-
! style="background-color: {{Labour Party (UK)/meta/color}}" |
| [[Harold Wilson]]
|-
! style="background-color: {{Labour Party (UK)/meta/color}}" |
| [[James Callaghan]]
|-
! style="background-color: {{Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color}}" |
| [[Margaret Thatcher]]
|- style="height: 45px"
! rowspan=2 style="background-color: {{Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color}}" |
| rowspan=2 | [[John Major]]
|-
! style="background-color: {{Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color}}" |
| [[Michael Heseltine]]
| [[File:Lord Heseltine, Deputy Prime Minister, UK (1995-97) (10559130986).jpg|60px]]
| 20 July 1995
| 2 May 1997
| Deputy Prime Minister
| Conservative
|-
| colspan=3 | ''Office not in use''
| colspan=2 align=center | 1997–2001
| colspan=2 |
! rowspan=2 style="background-color: {{Labour Party (UK)/meta/color}}" |
| rowspan=2 | [[Tony Blair]]
|-
! style="background-color: {{Labour Party (UK)/meta/color}}" |
| [[John Prescott]]
| [[File:John Prescott on his last day as Deputy Prime Minister, June 2007.jpg|60px]]
| 8 June 2001
| 27 June 2007
| Deputy Prime Minister ''(from May 1997)''
| Labour (Deputy Leader)
|-
| colspan=3 | ''Office not in use''
| colspan=2 align=center | 2007–2009
| colspan=2 |
! rowspan=2 style="background-color: {{Labour Party (UK)/meta/color}}" |
| rowspan=2 | [[Gordon Brown]]
|-
! style="background-color: {{Labour Party (UK)/meta/color}}" |
| [[Peter Mandelson|The Lord Mandelson]]
| [[File:Peter Mandelson at Politics of Climate Change 3.jpg|60px]]
| 5 June 2009
| 11 May 2010
| [[Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills|Business Secretary]] [[Lord President of the Council]]
| Labour
|-
! style="background-color: {{Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color}}" |
| [[William Hague]]
| [[File:William Hague Foreign Secretary (2010).jpg|60px]]
| 12 May 2010
| 8 May 2015
| Foreign Secretary ''(until July 2014)'' [[Leader of the House of Commons]] ''(from July 2014)''
| Conservative
! style="background-color: {{Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color}}" |
| [[David Cameron]] ([[First Cameron ministry|I]])
|-
! style="background-color: {{Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color}}" |
| [[George Osborne]]
| [[File:George osborne hi.jpg|60px]]
| 8 May 2015
| 13 July 2016
| [[Chancellor of the Exchequer]]
| [[Conservative Party (UK)|Conservative]]
! style="background-color: {{Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color}}" |
| [[David Cameron]] ([[Second Cameron ministry|II]])
|-
| colspan=3 | ''Office not in use''
| colspan=2 align=center | July - October 2016
| colspan=2 |
! style="background-color: {{Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color}}" |
| rowspan=2 | [[Theresa May]]
|-
! style="background-color: {{Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color}}" |
| [[Philip Hammond]]
| [[File:Philip_Hammond_2016.jpg|60px]]
| 18 October 2016
|
| [[Chancellor of the Exchequer]]
| [[Conservative Party (UK)|Conservative]]
! style="background-color: {{Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color}}" |
|}

==See also==
* [[Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom]]

==References==
{{reflist}}
{{First Secretary of State}}

[[Category:Ministerial offices in the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Honorary titles of the United Kingdom]]

[[sv:First Secretary of State]]

Wikipedia - Benutzerbeiträge [de]

First Secretary of State