Cabinet rank

A person with cabinet rank refers to a member of the Cabinet of the United Kingdom.

The ministerial ranking or order of precedence in cabinet refers to the "...pecking order"[1] of cabinet ministers, however its importance is debated.

Ministerial ranking

In the United Kingdom, the top three ministers after the Prime Minister are traditionally the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Foreign Secretary and Home Secretary. These four positions are referred to as the Great Offices of State.

However, the high prestige of these positions has not always run with ministerial rank, as the ministerial ranking is decided by the Prime Minister alone[1] (although David Cameron, in his autobiography, takes a slightly different view, explaining that it "...combines seniority of post and the length of time as a cabinet minister to determine the rank of everyone present..."[2])

Just as traditionally lower Cabinet jobs can be placed high, traditionally higher positions can be placed low in the rankings, such as when the then Secretary of State for Defence Bob Ainsworth was ranked the 3rd lowest ranking minister in Gordon Brown's cabinet.

Its importance is debated. Historian Peter Hennessy states that it "...matters more than one thinks in establishing the power of a Prime Minister in relation to his most senior colleagues."[1] However, Cameron says that it was "...something we had never bothered with..."[3] Indeed, in April 2020, when he was moved to ICU, Boris Johnson asked Dominic Raab, as First Secretary of State, "...to deputise for him where necessary."[4] A Downing Street spokesperson at the time said that Rishi Sunak followed Raab in the order of precedence,[5][6] but the ministerial ranking on the parliament.uk at the time showed Sunak ranking above Raab,[7] thus further suggesting that the ministerial ranking has little practical significance.

Current ministerial ranking

The current ministerial ranking, as of 12 August 2020, is as follows:[8]

Rank Minister Role Department
1 Boris Johnson Prime Minister, First Lord of the Treasury and Minister for the Civil Service Cabinet Office
2 Rishi Sunak Chancellor of the Exchequer HM Treasury
3 Dominic Raab Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs and First Secretary of State Foreign and Commonwealth Office
4 Priti Patel Secretary of State for the Home Department Home Office
5 Michael Gove Minister for the Cabinet Office and Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster Cabinet Office
6 Robert Buckland Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice Ministry of Justice
7 Ben Wallace Secretary of State for Defence Ministry of Defence
8 Matt Hancock Secretary of State for Health and Social Care Department of Health and Social Care
9 Alok Sharma Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
10 Elizabeth Truss Secretary of State for International Trade and President of the Board of Trade Department for International Trade and UK Export Finance
11 Thérèse Coffey Secretary of State for Work and Pensions Department for Work and Pensions
12 Gavin Williamson Secretary of State for Education Department for Education and Skills
13 George Eustice Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
14 Robert Jenrick Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
15 Grant Shapps Secretary of State for Transport Department for Transport
16 Brandon Lewis Secretary of State for Northern Ireland Northern Ireland Office
17 Alister Jack Secretary of State for Scotland Scotland Office
18 Simon Hart Secretary of State for Wales Wales Office
19 Natalie Evans, Baroness Evans of Bowes Park Leader of the House of Lords and Lord Privy Seal Office of the Leader of the House of Lords
20 Oliver Dowden Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport
21 Anne-Marie Trevelyan Secretary of State for International Development Department for International Development
22 Amanda Milling Minister without Portfolio (Chairman of the Conservative party) Cabinet Office
23 Steve Barclay Chief Secretary to the Treasury HM Treasury
24 Jacob Rees-Mogg Lord President of the Council and Leader of the House of Commons Office of the Leader of the House of Commons
25 Mark Spencer Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury and Chief Whip HM Treasury
26 Suella Braverman Attorney General Attorney General's Office

References
  1. Hennessy, Peter, 1947- (2000). The prime minister : the office and its holders since 1945. London: Allen Lane/Penguin Press. p. 63. ISBN 0-7139-9340-5. OCLC 44533175.CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  2. Cameron, David, 1966 October 9-. For the record. London. pp. 731–732. ISBN 0-00-823928-2. OCLC 1101985310.CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  3. Cameron, David, 1966 October 9-. For the record. London. p. 731. ISBN 0-00-823928-2. OCLC 1101985310.CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  4. "Statement from Downing Street: 6 April 2020". GOV.UK. Retrieved 2020-08-12.
  5. "Rishi Sunak to run government if Dominic Raab becomes incapacitated". www.msn.com. Retrieved 2020-08-12.
  6. Yorke, Harry (2020-04-07). "Rishi Sunak named successor number two amid claims Michael Gove was 'deliberately' overlooked". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 2020-08-12.
  7. "Her Majesty's Government: The Cabinet - MPs and Lords - UK Parliament". web.archive.org. 2020-04-21. Retrieved 2020-08-12.
  8. "Her Majesty's Government: The Cabinet". parliament.uk. Retrieved 12 August 2020.

See also
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