Lord Privy Seal

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United Kingdom Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal
Royal Arms of His Majesty's Government
Incumbent The Baroness Smith of Basildon since 5 July 2024
Style	The Right Honourable
Type	Great Officer of State
Appointer	The King (on the advice of the Prime Minister)
Term length	At His Majesty's pleasure
Formation	1307
First holder	William Melton

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The Lord Privy Seal (or, more formally, the Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal) is the fifth of the Great Officers of State in the United Kingdom, ranking beneath the Lord President of the Council and above the Lord Great Chamberlain. Originally, its holder was responsible for the monarch's personal (privy) seal (as opposed to the Great Seal of the Realm, which is in the care of the lord chancellor) until the use of such a seal became obsolete. Though one of the oldest offices in European governments, it has no particular function today because the use of a privy seal has been obsolete for centuries; it may be regarded as a traditional sinecure, but today, the holder of the office is invariably given a seat in the Cabinet of the United Kingdom, and is sometimes referred to as a minister without portfolio.

Since the premiership of Clement Attlee, the position of Lord Privy Seal has frequently been combined with that of leader of the House of Lords or leader of the House of Commons. The office of Lord Privy Seal, unlike those of leader of the Lords or Commons, is eligible for a ministerial salary under the Ministerial and Other Salaries Act 1975.^[1] The office does not confer membership of the House of Lords, leading to Ernest Bevin's remark on holding this office that he was "neither a Lord, nor a Privy, nor a Seal".^[2][3]

During the reign of Edward I, prior to 1307, the privy seal was kept by the controller of the wardrobe.^[4] The Lord Privy Seal was the president of the Court of Requests during its existence.

Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal

Lord Keeper	Term of office		Monarch (Reign)
William Melton	1307	1312	Edward II r. 1307–1327
Roger Northburgh	1312	1316
Thomas Charlton	1316	1320
Robert Baldock Archdeacon of Middlesex	1320	1323
Robert Wodehouse	1323	1323
Robert Ayleston	1323	1324
William Ayermin	1324	1325
Henry de Cliff	1325	1325
William Herlaston	1325	1326
Robert Wyvil	1326	1327
Richard Airmyn	1327	1328	Edward III r. 1327–1377
Adam de Lymbergh	1328	1329
Richard Bury Bishop of Durham	1329	1334
Robert Ayleston	1334	1334
Robert Tawton	1334	1335
William de la Zouch	1335	1337
Richard Bintworth	1337	1338
William Kilsby	1338	1342
John de Ufford	1342	1344
Thomas Hatfield	1344	1345
John Thoresby Master of the Rolls	1345	1347
Simon Islip Archbishop of Canterbury	1347	1350
Michael Northburgh Archdeacon of Suffolk	1350	1354
Thomas Bramber	1354	1355
John Winwick	1355	1360
John Buckingham Bishop of Lincoln	1360	1363
William of Wykeham Archdeacon of Lincoln	1363	1367
Peter Lacy	1367	1371
Nicholas Carew MP for Surrey	1371	1377
John Fordham	1377	1381	Richard II r. 1377–1399
William Dighton	1381	1382
Walter Skirclaw Bishop of Coventry and Lichfield	1382	1386
John Waltham Bishop of Salisbury	1386	1389
Edmund Stafford Bishop of Exeter	1389	1396
Guy Mone	1396	1397
Richard Clifford Bishop of Bath and Wells	1397	1401
			Henry IV r. 1399–1413
Thomas Langley	1401	1405
Nicholas Bubwith	1405	1406
John Prophet Dean of York	1406	1415
			Henry V r. 1413–1422
John Wakering Bishop of Norwich	1415	1416
Henry Ware	1416	1418
John Kemp Bishop of Rochester	1418	1421
John Stafford	1421	1422
William Alnwick Bishop of Norwich [nb 1]	1422	1432	Henry VI r. 1422–1461
William Lyndwood Bishop of St David's[nb 2]	1432	1443
Thomas Beckington Bishop of Bath and Wells	1443	1444
Adam Moleyns Bishop of Chichester[nb 3]	1444	1450
Andrew Holes Archdeacon of York	1450	1452
Thomas Lisieux Dean of St Paul's	1452	1456
Laurence Booth Bishop of Durham[nb 4]	1456	1460
Robert Stillington Bishop of Bath and Wells[nb 5]	1460	1467
			Edward IV r. 1461–1470
Thomas Rotherham Bishop of Rochester[nb 6]	1467	1470
John Hales Bishop of Coventry and Lichfield	1470	1471	Henry VI r. 1470–1471
Thomas Rotherham Bishop of Lincoln[nb 7]	1471	1474	Edward IV r. 1471–1483
John Russell Bishop of Lincoln[nb 8]	1474	1483
			Edward V r. 1483
John Gunthorpe Dean of Wells	1483	1485
			Richard III r. 1483–1485
Peter Courtenay Bishop of Exeter	1485	1487	Henry VII r. 1485–1509
Richard Foxe Bishop of Winchester[nb 9]	1487	1516
			Henry VIII r. 1509–1547
Thomas Ruthall Bishop of Durham	1516	1523
Henry Marney 1st Baron Marney	1523	1523
Cuthbert Tunstall Bishop of London	1523	1530
Thomas Boleyn 1st Earl of Wiltshire	1530	1536
Thomas Cromwell 1st Earl of Essex[nb 10]	1536	1540
William FitzWilliam 1st Earl of Southampton	1540	1542
John Russell 1st Earl of Bedford[nb 11]	1542	1555
			Edward VI r. 1547–1553
			Mary I r. 1553–1558
William Paget 1st Baron Paget	1555	1558
Nicholas Bacon	1558	1571	Elizabeth I r. 1558–1603
William Cecil 1st Baron Burghley	1571	1572
William Howard 1st Baron Howard of Effingham	1572	1573
Thomas Smith MP for Essex	1573	1576
Francis Walsingham MP for Surrey	1576	1590
William Cecil 1st Baron Burghley	1590	1598
Robert Cecil 1st Earl of Salisbury	1598	1608
			James I r. 1603–1625
Henry Howard 1st Earl of Northampton	1608	1614
Robert Carr 1st Earl of Somerset	1614	1616
Edward Somerset 4th Earl of Worcester	1616	1625
John Coke MP for Cambridge University	1625	1628	Charles I r. 1625–1649
Robert Naunton	1628	1628
Henry Montagu 1st Earl of Manchester	1628	1642
Lucius Cary 2nd Viscount Falkland	1643	1643
Edward Nicholas[nb 12]	1643	1644
Henry Bourchier 5th Earl of Bath	1644	1646 [nb 13]
Interregnum Commissioners of Parliament's Great Seal	1646	1660	Charles II Court in exile
John Robartes 2nd Baron Robartes	1660	1673	Charles II r. 1660–1685
Arthur Annesley 1st Earl of Anglesey	1673	1682
George Savile 1st Marquess of Halifax	1682	1685
Henry Hyde 2nd Earl of Clarendon	1685	1687	James II r. 1685–1688
Henry Arundell 3rd Baron Arundell of Wardour	1687	1688
George Savile 1st Marquess of Halifax	1689	1690	Mary II r. 1689–1694 & William III r. 1689–1702
Thomas Herbert 8th Earl of Pembroke	1692	1699
John Lowther 1st Viscount Lonsdale	1699	1700
Ford Grey 1st Earl of Tankerville	1700	1701
John Sheffield 1st Duke of Buckingham and Normanby[nb 14]	1702	1705	Anne r. 1702–1714
John Holles 1st Duke of Newcastle upon Tyne	1705	1711
John Robinson Bishop of Bristol	1711	1713
William Legge 1st Earl of Dartmouth	1713	1714

Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal

Lord Keeper			Term of office		Other ministerial portfolios held during tenure	Party	Ministry	Monarch (Reign)
		Thomas Wharton 1st Marquess of Wharton[nb 15]	23 September 1714	31 August 1715		Whig	Townshend	George I r. 1714–1727
		Charles Spencer 3rd Earl of Sunderland	31 August 1715	19 December 1716		—
		Evelyn Pierrepont 1st Duke of Kingston-upon-Hull	19 December 1716	6 February 1719		—
							Stanhope–Sunderland I
							Stanhope–Sunderland II
		Henry Grey 1st Duke of Kent	6 February 1719	11 June 1720		—
		Evelyn Pierrepont 1st Duke of Kingston-upon-Hull	11 June 1720	11 March 1726		—
							Walpole–Townshend
		Thomas Trevor 1st Baron Trevor	11 March 1726	8 May 1730		—
								George II r. 1727–1760
		Spencer Compton 1st Earl of Wilmington	8 May 1730	January 1731		Whig	Walpole
		William Cavendish 3rd Duke of Devonshire	12 January 1731	5 May 1733		Whig
		Henry Lowther 3rd Viscount Lonsdale	5 May 1733	16 May 1735		—
		Francis Godolphin 2nd Earl of Godolphin	16 May 1735	7 April 1740		—
		John Hervey 2nd Baron Hervey	7 April 1740	13 July 1742		—
		John Leveson-Gower 2nd Baron Gower	13 July 1742	10 December 1743		Tory	Carteret
		George Cholmondeley 3rd Earl of Cholmondeley	10 December 1743	27 December 1744		—
		John Leveson-Gower 1st Earl Gower[nb 16]	27 December 1744	8 June 1755		Tory	Broad Bottom (I & II)
							Newcastle I
		Charles Spencer 3rd Duke of Marlborough	8 June 1755	22 December 1755		—
		Granville Leveson-Gower 2nd Earl Gower	22 December 1755	30 June 1757		Tory
							Pitt–Devonshire
							1757 Caretaker
		Richard Grenville-Temple 2nd Earl Temple	30 June 1757	5 October 1761		—	Pitt–Newcastle
								George III (1760–1820) [nb 17]
		John Russell 4th Duke of Bedford	25 November 1761	22 April 1763		Whig
							Bute
		George Spencer 4th Duke of Marlborough	22 April 1763	30 July 1765		—	Grenville (Whig–Tory)
		Thomas Pelham-Holles 1st Duke of Newcastle	30 July 1765	30 July 1766		Whig	Rockingham I
		William Pitt 1st Earl of Chatham	30 July 1766	2 November 1768	Prime Minister	Whig	Chatham (Whig–Tory)
		George Hervey 2nd Earl of Bristol	2 November 1768	26 February 1770		—	Grafton (Whig–Tory)
		George Montagu-Dunk 2nd Earl of Halifax	26 February 1770	22 January 1771		Tory	North
		Henry Howard 12th Earl of Suffolk	22 January 1771	12 June 1771		—
		Augustus FitzRoy 3rd Duke of Grafton	12 June 1771	4 November 1775		Whig
		William Legge 2nd Earl of Dartmouth	4 November 1775	27 March 1782		—
		Augustus FitzRoy 3rd Duke of Grafton	27 March 1782	4 April 1783		Whig	Rockingham II
							Shelburne (Whig–Tory)
		Frederick Howard 5th Earl of Carlisle	4 April 1783	23 December 1783		—	Fox–North (Whig–Tory)
		Charles Manners 4th Duke of Rutland	23 December 1783	27 November 1784		—	Pitt I
		Granville Leveson-Gower 1st Marquess of Stafford[nb 18]	27 November 1784	1794		Tory
		George Spencer 2nd Earl Spencer	1794	16 July 1794		Whig
		John Pitt 2nd Earl of Chatham	16 July 1794	14 February 1798		—
		John Fane 10th Earl of Westmorland	14 February 1798	5 February 1806		Tory
							Addington
							Pitt II
		Henry Addington 1st Viscount Sidmouth	5 February 1806	15 October 1806		Tory	All the Talents (Whig–Tory)
		Henry Vassall-Fox 3rd Baron Holland	15 October 1806	25 March 1807		Whig
		John Fane 10th Earl of Westmorland	25 March 1807	30 April 1827		Tory	Portland II
							Perceval
							Liverpool
								George IV r. 1820–1830
		William Cavendish-Scott-Bentinck 4th Duke of Portland	30 April 1827	16 July 1827		Tory	Canning (Canningite–Whig)
		George Howard 6th Earl of Carlisle	16 July 1827	26 January 1828		Whig
							Goderich (Canningite–Whig)
		Edward Law 2nd Baron Ellenborough	26 January 1828	10 June 1829	President of the Board of Control[nb 19]	Tory	Wellington–Peel
		James St Clair-Erskine 2nd Earl of Rosslyn	10 June 1829	22 November 1830		Tory
								William IV r. 1830–1837
		John Lambton 1st Baron Durham	22 November 1830	3 April 1833		Whig	Grey
		Frederick John Robinson 1st Earl of Ripon	3 April 1833	5 June 1834		Whig
		George Howard 6th Earl of Carlisle	5 June 1834	30 July 1834		Whigs
		Constantine Phipps 2nd Earl of Mulgrave	30 July 1834	14 November 1834		Whig	Melbourne I
		James Stuart-Wortley-Mackenzie 1st Baron Wharncliffe	15 December 1834	8 April 1835		Conservative	Peel I
		John Ponsonby 1st Baron Duncannon styled Viscount Duncannon	23 April 1835	15 January 1840	First Commissioner of Woods and Forests	Whig	Melbourne II
								Victoria r. 1837–1901
		George Villiers 4th Earl of Clarendon	15 January 1840	30 August 1841	Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster[nb 20]	Whig
		Richard Temple-Nugent-Brydges-Chandos-Grenville 2nd Duke of Buckingham and Chandos	3 September 1841	2 February 1842		Conservative	Peel II
		Walter Montagu-Douglas-Scott 5th Duke of Buccleuch	2 February 1842	21 January 1846		Conservative
		Thomas Hamilton 9th Earl of Haddington	21 January 1846	27 June 1846		Conservative
		Gilbert Elliot-Murray-Kynynmound 2nd Earl of Minto	6 July 1846	21 February 1852		Whig	Russell I
		James Gascoyne-Cecil 2nd Marquess of Salisbury	27 February 1852	17 December 1852		Conservative	Who? Who?
		George Campbell 8th Duke of Argyll	4 January 1853	7 December 1855		Peelite	Aberdeen (Peelite–Whig)
							Palmerston I
		Dudley Ryder 2nd Earl of Harrowby	7 December 1855	3 February 1858		Whig
		Ulick de Burgh 1st Marquess of Clanricarde	3 February 1858	21 February 1858		Whig
		Charles Yorke 4th Earl of Hardwicke	26 February 1858	11 June 1859		Conservative	Derby–Disraeli II
		George Campbell 8th Duke of Argyll	18 June 1859	26 June 1866		Liberal	Palmerston II
							Russell II
		James Harris 3rd Earl of Malmesbury	6 July 1866	1 December 1868		Conservative	Derby–Disraeli III
		John Wodehouse 1st Earl of Kimberley	9 December 1868	6 July 1870		Liberal	Gladstone I
		Charles Wood 1st Viscount Halifax	6 July 1870	17 February 1874		Liberal
		James Harris 3rd Earl of Malmesbury	21 February 1874	12 August 1876		Conservative	Disraeli II
		Benjamin Disraeli 1st Earl of Beaconsfield	12 August 1876	4 February 1878	Prime Minister First Lord of the Treasury	Conservative
		Algernon Percy 6th Duke of Northumberland	4 February 1878	21 April 1880		Conservative
		George Campbell 8th Duke of Argyll	28 April 1880	2 May 1881		Liberal	Gladstone II
		Chichester Parkinson-Fortescue 1st Baron Carlingford	2 May 1881	5 March 1885		Liberal
		Archibald Primrose 5th Earl of Rosebery	5 March 1885	9 June 1885	First Commissioner of Works	Liberal
		Dudley Ryder 3rd Earl of Harrowby	24 June 1885	28 January 1886		Conservative	Salisbury I
		William Ewart Gladstone MP for Midlothian	17 February 1886	20 July 1886	Prime Minister First Lord of the Treasury Leader of the House of Commons	Liberal	Gladstone III
		George Cadogan 5th Earl Cadogan	3 August 1886	11 August 1892		Conservative	Salisbury II
		William Ewart Gladstone MP for Midlothian	20 August 1892	10 March 1894	Prime Minister First Lord of the Treasury Leader of the House of Commons	Liberal	Gladstone IV
		Edward Marjoribanks 2nd Baron Tweedmouth	10 March 1894	21 June 1895	Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster[nb 21]	Liberal	Rosebery
		Richard Assheton Cross 1st Viscount Cross	29 June 1895	12 November 1900		Conservative	Salisbury (III & IV) (Con.–Lib.U.)
		Robert Gascoyne-Cecil 3rd Marquess of Salisbury	12 November 1900	July 1902	Prime Minister Leader of the House of Lords	Conservative
								Edward VII r. 1901–1910
		Arthur Balfour MP for Manchester East	14 July 1902	October 1903	Prime Minister First Lord of the Treasury Leader of the House of Commons	Conservative	Balfour (Con.–Lib.U.)
		James Gascoyne-Cecil 4th Marquess of Salisbury	17 October 1903	December 1905	President of the Board of Trade[nb 22]	Conservative
		George Robinson 1st Marquess of Ripon	10 December 1905	October 1908	Leader of the House of Lords[nb 23]	Liberal	Campbell-Bannerman
							Asquith (I–III)
		Robert Crewe-Milnes 1st Marquess of Crewe[nb 24]	9 October 1908	October 1911	Leader of the House of Lords Secretary of State for the Colonies[nb 25] Secretary of State for India[nb 26]	Liberal
								George V r. 1910–1936
		Charles Wynn-Carington 1st Earl Carrington	23 October 1911	February 1912		Liberal
		Robert Crewe-Milnes 1st Marquess of Crewe	13 February 1912	May 1915	Secretary of State for India Leader of the House of Lords	Liberal
		George Curzon 1st Earl Curzon of Kedleston	25 May 1915	December 1916	President of the Air Board[nb 27]	Conservative	Asquith Coalition (Lib.–Con.–Lab.)
		David Lindsay 27th Earl of Crawford	15 December 1916	January 1919		Conservative	Lloyd George (I & II) (Lib.–Con.–Lab.)
		Bonar Law MP for Glasgow Central	10 January 1919	March 1921	Leader of the House of Commons	Conservative
		Austen Chamberlain MP for Birmingham West	23 March 1921	October 1922	Leader of the House of Commons	Conservative
Vacant			October 1922	May 1923			Law
		Robert Cecil 1st Viscount Cecil of Chelwood[nb 28]	28 May 1923	January 1924		Conservative	Baldwin I
		J. R. Clynes MP for Manchester Platting	22 January 1924	November 1924	Deputy Leader of the House of Commons	Labour	MacDonald I
		James Gascoyne-Cecil 4th Marquess of Salisbury	6 November 1924	June 1929	Leader of the House of Lords[nb 29]	Conservative	Baldwin II
		Jimmy Thomas MP for Derby	7 June 1929	June 1930		Labour	MacDonald II
		Vernon Hartshorn MP for Ogmore	5 June 1930	March 1931		Labour
		Tom Johnston MP for West Stirlingshire	24 March 1931	August 1931		Labour
		William Peel 1st Earl Peel	August 1931	November 1931		Conservative	National I (N.Lab.–Con.–Lib.N.–Lib.)
		Philip Snowden 1st Viscount Snowden	5 November 1931	September 1932		National Labour	National II (N.Lab.–Con.–Lib.N.–Lib.)
		Stanley Baldwin MP for Bewdley	29 September 1932	December 1933	Lord President of the Council	Conservative
		Anthony Eden MP for Warwick and Leamington	31 December 1933	June 1935		Conservative
		Charles Vane-Tempest-Stewart 7th Marquess of Londonderry	7 June 1935	November 1935	Leader of the House of Lords	Conservative	National III (Con.–N.Lab.–Lib.N.)
		Edward Wood 3rd Viscount Halifax	22 November 1935	May 1937	Leader of the House of Lords	Conservative
								Edward VIII r. 1936
								George VI r. 1936–1952
		Herbrand Sackville 9th Earl De La Warr	28 May 1937	October 1938		National Labour	National IV (Con.–N.Lab.–Lib.N.)
		John Anderson 1st Viscount Waverley MP for Combined Scottish Universities	31 October 1938	September 1939		Independent (National)
		Samuel Hoare 1st Viscount Templewood MP for Chelsea	3 September 1939	April 1940		Conservative	Chamberlain War (Con.–N.Lab.–Lib.N.)
		Kingsley Wood MP for Woolwich West	3 April 1940	May 1940		Conservative
		Clement Attlee MP for Limehouse	11 May 1940	February 1942	Deputy Leader of the House of Commons	Labour	Churchill War (All parties)
		Stafford Cripps MP for Bristol East	19 February 1942	November 1942	Leader of the House of Commons	Labour
		Robert Gascoyne-Cecil Viscount Cranborne	22 November 1942	September 1943	Leader of the House of Lords	Conservative
		Max Aitken 1st Baron Beaverbrook	24 September 1943	July 1945		Conservative
							Churchill Caretaker (Con.–N.Lib.)
		Arthur Greenwood MP for Wakefield	27 July 1945	17 April 1947	Paymaster General[nb 30]	Labour	Attlee (I & II)
		Philip Inman 1st Baron Inman	17 April 1947	7 October 1947		Labour
		Christopher Addison 1st Viscount Addison	7 October 1947	9 March 1951	Leader of the House of Lords Paymaster General[nb 31]	Labour
		Ernest Bevin MP for Woolwich East	9 March 1951	14 April 1951		Labour
		Richard Stokes MP for Ipswich	26 April 1951	October 1951	Minister of Materials[nb 32]	Labour
		Robert Gascoyne-Cecil 5th Marquess of Salisbury	28 October 1951	7 May 1952	Leader of the House of Lords Secretary of State for Commonwealth Relations[nb 33]	Conservative	Churchill III
								Elizabeth II r. 1952–2022
		Harry Crookshank MP for Gainsborough	7 May 1952	20 December 1955	Leader of the House of Commons	Conservative
							Eden
		R. A. Butler MP for Saffron Walden	20 December 1955	October 1959	Leader of the House of Commons Secretary of State for the Home Department[nb 34]	Conservative
							Macmillan (I & II)
		Quintin Hogg 2nd Viscount Hailsham	14 October 1959	July 1960	Minister of Science	Conservative
		Edward Heath MP for Bexley	27 July 1960	October 1963	Deputy Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs	Conservative
		Selwyn Lloyd MP for Wirral	20 October 1963	October 1964	Leader of the House of Commons	Conservative	Douglas-Home
		Frank Pakenham 7th Earl of Longford	18 October 1964	December 1965	Leader of the House of Lords	Labour	Wilson (I & II)
		Frank Soskice MP for Newport	23 December 1965	April 1966		Labour
		Frank Pakenham 7th Earl of Longford	6 April 1966	January 1968	Leader of the House of Lords	Labour
		Edward Shackleton Baron Shackleton	16 January 1968	April 1968	Leader of the House of Lords	Labour
		Fred Peart MP for Workington	6 April	October 1968		Labour
		Edward Shackleton Baron Shackleton	18 October 1968	June 1970	Leader of the House of Lords	Labour
		George Jellicoe 2nd Earl Jellicoe	20 June 1970	June 1973	Leader of the House of Lords	Conservative	Heath
		David Hennessy 3rd Baron Windlesham	5 June 1973	March 1974	Leader of the House of Lords	Conservative
		Malcolm Shepherd 2nd Baron Shepherd	7 March 1974	September 1976	Leader of the House of Lords	Labour	Wilson (III & IV)
							Callaghan
		Fred Peart Baron Peart	10 September 1976	May 1979	Leader of the House of Lords	Labour
		Ian Gilmour Baron Gilmour of Craigmillar MP for Chesham and Amersham	5 May 1979	September 1981	Government spokesman in the House of Commons for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs	Conservative	Thatcher I
		Humphrey Atkins MP for Spelthorne	14 September 1981	April 1982	Government spokesman in the House of Commons for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs	Conservative
		Janet Young Baroness Young	6 April 1982	June 1983	Leader of the House of Lords	Conservative
		John Biffen MP for North Shropshire	11 June 1983	June 1987	Leader of the House of Commons	Conservative	Thatcher II
		John Wakeham MP for South Colchester and Maldon	13 June 1987	10 January 1988	Leader of the House of Commons	Conservative	Thatcher III
		John Ganzoni 2nd Baron Belstead	10 January 1988	28 November 1990	Leader of the House of Lords	Conservative
		David Waddington Baron Waddington	28 November 1990	11 April 1992	Leader of the House of Lords	Conservative	Major I
		John Wakeham Baron Wakeham	11 April 1992	20 July 1994	Leader of the House of Lords	Conservative
		Robert Gascoyne-Cecil Viscount Cranborne	20 July 1994	2 May 1997	Leader of the House of Lords	Conservative
							Major II
		Ivor Richard Baron Richard	2 May 1997	27 July 1998	Leader of the House of Lords	Labour	Blair I
		Margaret Jay Baroness Jay of Paddington	27 July 1998	8 June 2001	Leader of the House of Lords Minister for Women	Labour
		Gareth Williams Baron Williams of Mostyn	8 June 2001	13 June 2003	Leader of the House of Lords	Labour	Blair II
		Peter Hain MP for Neath	13 June 2003	6 May 2005	Leader of the House of Commons	Labour
		Geoff Hoon MP for Ashfield	6 May 2005	5 May 2006	Leader of the House of Commons	Labour	Blair III
		Jack Straw MP for Blackburn	5 May 2006	27 June 2007	Leader of the House of Commons	Labour
		Harriet Harman MP for Camberwell and Peckham	28 June 2007	11 May 2010	Leader of the House of Commons Minister for Women and Equality	Labour	Brown
		George Young MP for North West Hampshire	12 May 2010	4 September 2012	Leader of the House of Commons	Conservative	Cameron–Clegg (Con.–L.D.)
		Andrew Lansley MP for South Cambridgeshire	4 September 2012	14 July 2014	Leader of the House of Commons	Conservative
		Tina Stowell Baroness Stowell of Beeston	15 July 2014	14 July 2016	Leader of the House of Lords	Conservative
							Cameron II
		Natalie Evans Baroness Evans of Bowes Park	14 July 2016	6 September 2022	Leader of the House of Lords	Conservative	May I
							May II
							Johnson I
							Johnson II
		Nicholas True Baron True	6 September 2022	5 July 2024	Leader of the House of Lords	Conservative	Truss
								Charles III (2022–present)
							Sunak
		Angela Smith Baroness Smith of Basildon	5 July 2024	Incumbent	Leader of the House of Lords	Labour	Starmer

Notes

• Keeper of the seals of France
• Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal of Japan
• Keeper of the Rulers' Seal of Malaysia

• Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster
• Keeper of the Privy Seal of Scotland
• Lord Keeper of the Great Seal
• Lord Privy Seal (term), as used in the television news business

• Sergeant, John (2002). Give me ten seconds. Pan Books. ISBN 0-330-48490-7.