Newly-elected UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer has started to appoint his cabinet after leading his party to a landslide win in the 2024 general election.
Angela Rayner was the first new cabinet announcement, appointed Deputy Prime Minister and Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities this afternoon, reports AFP.
Rayner was the first Labour MP to enter Downing Street today afternoon.
She was followed by Rachel Reeves, who was subsequently confirmed as the UK’s first female Chancellor.
David Lammy has been appointed Foreign Secretary and Yvette Cooper has been appointed Home Secretary; both previously served in Tony Blair’s government.
Pat McFadden, Labour’s National Campaign Coordinator and widely seen as one of the masterminds behind Starmer’s election campaign, has been appointed Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster. He also served as political secretary under Blair.
Wes Streeting, who narrowly held onto his seat in Ilford North by 528 votes, has also been appointed Health Secretary – with former Labour leader Ed Miliband confirmed as Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero.
Starmer will continue to appoint his top team throughout the day.
Earlier on in the day, he entered Downing Street as Prime Minister for the first time after leading Labour to a landslide victory over the Conservatives yesterday.
In a speech outside No.10, Starmer, who is the UK’s 58th Prime Minister and just Labour’s seventh in the party’s history, pledged to work “immediately” to restore public trust in politics and “rebuild” Britain.
He also paid tribute to the “dedication and hard work” of Rishi Sunak, who resigned as Prime Minister earlier on Friday after the Tory party’s crushing election defeat.
Cabinet minister announcements so far:
Angela Rayner – Deputy Prime Minister and Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
Rachel Reeves – Chancellor of the Exchequer
David Lammy – Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs
Yvette Cooper – Home Secretary
John Healey – Secretary of State for Defence
Pat McFadden – Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster
Wes Streeting MP – Secretary of State for Health and Social Care;
Shabana Mahmood – Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice
Bridget Phillipson MP – Secretary of State for Education
Ed Miliband MP – Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero
