Shadow Secretary of State for Transport

Political post in the United Kingdom

Shadow Secretary of State for Transport

Incumbent
Gareth Bacon

since 5 November 2024

Shadow Cabinet of the United Kingdom
Reports to| Leader of the Opposition
Appointer| Leader of the Opposition
Website| The Shadow Cabinet

The shadow secretary of state for transport is a political post in the United Kingdom. It has been consistently held by a member of the Official Opposition Shadow Cabinet since May 1979. The shadow secretary helps hold the transport secretary and junior ministers to account and is the lead spokesperson on transport matters for their party. Should the relevant party take office, the shadow secretary would be a likely candidate to become the transport secretary.

At various times, the post has been called Shadow Minister for Transport (including from 1979 to 1981), Shadow Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions, Shadow Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions, and Shadow Secretary of State for Environment and Transport.

## Shadow secretaries of state

[edit]

### Shadow Secretary of State for Transport

[edit]

Name  | Took office  | Left office  | Political party  | Shadow Cabinet
| William Rodgers |  | 4 May 1979  | 14 June 1979  | Labour  | Callaghan
| Albert Booth[1][n 1] |  | 14 June 1979  | 31 October 1983  | Labour
Foot
| John Prescott[2] |  | 31 October 1983  | 26 October 1984  | Labour  | Kinnock
| Gwyneth Dunwoody[3] |  | 26 October 1984  | 4 November 1985  | Labour
| Robert Hughes[4] |  | 4 November 1985  | 23 November 1988  | Labour
| John Prescott |  | 23 November 1988  | 21 October 1993  | Labour
| Smith
| Frank Dobson[5] |  | 21 October 1993  | 20 October 1994  | Labour
Beckett
| Michael Meacher[6] |  | 20 October 1994  | 19 October 1995  | Labour  | Blair
| Clare Short[7] |  | 19 October 1995  | 25 July 1996  | Labour
| Andrew Smith[8][9] |  | 25 July 1996  | 2 May 1997  | Labour
| Sir George Young[10] |  | 2 May 1997  | June 1997  | Conservative  | Major

### Shadow Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions

[edit]

Name  | Took office  | Left office  | Political party  | Shadow Cabinet
| Norman Fowler |  | June 1997  | 1 June 1998  | Conservative  | Hague
| Gillian Shepherd[11] |  | 1 June 1998  | 14 June 1999  | Conservative
| John Redwood[12] |  | 14 June 1999  | 2 February 2000  | Conservative
| Archie Norman |  | 2 February 2000  | 18 September 2001  | Conservative

### Shadow Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions

[edit]

Name  | Took office  | Left office  | Political party  | Shadow Cabinet
| Theresa May[13][14] |  | 18 September 2001  | 23 July 2002  | Conservative  | Duncan Smith

### Shadow Secretary of State for Transport

[edit]

Name  | Took office  | Left office  | Political party  | Shadow Cabinet
| Tim Collins[15] |  | 23 July 2002  | 10 November 2003  | Conservative  | Duncan Smith
| Damian Green[n 2] |  | 10 November 2003  | 8 September 2004  | Conservative  | Howard

### Shadow Secretary of State for Environment and Transport

[edit]

Name  | Took office  | Left office  | Political party  | Shadow Cabinet
| Tim Yeo[17] |  | 8 September 2004  | 10 May 2005  | Conservative  | Howard

### Shadow Secretary of State for Transport

[edit]

Name  | Took office  | Left office  | Political party  | Shadow Cabinet
| Alan Duncan[18] |  | 6 May 2005  | 8 December 2005  | Conservative  | Howard
| Chris Grayling[19] |  | 8 December 2005  | 2 July 2007  | Conservative  | Cameron
| Theresa Villiers[20] |  | 2 July 2007  | 11 May 2010  | Conservative
| Sadiq Khan[21] |  | 14 May 2010  | 8 October 2010  | Labour  | Harman I
| Maria Eagle[22] |  | 8 October 2010  | 7 October 2013  | Labour  | Miliband
| Mary Creagh[23] |  | 7 October 2013  | 5 November 2014  | Labour
| Michael Dugher[24] |  | 5 November 2014  | 13 September 2015  | Labour
Harman II
| Lilian Greenwood |  | 13 September 2015  | 26 June 2016 | Labour  | Corbyn
| Andy McDonald |  | 27 June 2016 | 6 April 2020  | Labour
| Jim McMahon |  | 6 April 2020  | 29 November 2021 | Labour  | Starmer
| Louise Haigh |  | 29 November 2021 | 5 July 2024  | Labour
| Helen Whately |  | 8 July 2024  | 5 November 2024  | Conservative  | Sunak
| Gareth Bacon |  | 5 November 2024  | Incumbent | Conservative  | Badenoch

## Notes

[edit]

1. ^ Booth was Shadow Minister of Transport until September 1981, when the Minister of Transport became Secretary of State for Transport.
2. ^ During this period, Michael Howard had a small Shadow Cabinet, with members heading "super" Shadow Departments. The Shadow Transport Secretary was part of the Shadow Environment and Transport team, which was headed by the Shadow Secretary of State for Environment and Transport. Theresa May first held thislatter office, and was replaced by Tim Yeo on 14 June 2004.[16] When Damian Green resigned from the frontbench during a reshuffle on 8 September 2004, Yeo took on his responsibilities.[17]

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Parkhouse, Geoffrey (15 June 1979). "Shore steps up as Owen is demoted". The Glasgow Herald. p. 1.
2. ^ Parkhouse, Geoffrey (1 November 1983). "Protest by Nationalists as Dewar takes over". The Glasgow Herald. p. 7.
3. ^ Parkhouse, Geoffrey (27 October 1984). "Smith chosen to shadow Tebbit". The Glasgow Herald. p. 1.
4. ^ Trotter, Stuart (5 November 1985). "Transport job goes to Hugues". The Glasgow Herald. p. 7.
5. ^ Timmins, Nicholas (25 July 1992). "Smith revamps Shadow Cabinet: Nicholas Timmins analyses the Labour line-up and looks at the backgrounds of the newcomers". The Independent. London. Retrieved 2 June 2011.
6. ^ Timms, Nicholas (21 October 1994). "Blair uses reshuffle to put own sta on Shadow Cabinet: Brown stays as shadow Chancellor—Cook takes foreign affairs—Straw is shadow Home Secretary—Beckett moves to health". The Independent. Retrieved 18 July 2011.
7. ^ "New MPs promoted by Blair". The Independent. 22 October 1995. Retrieved 26 July 2011.
8. ^ "Opposition Front Bench Spokespersons 1996/97". Weekly Information Bulletin. House of Commons Information Office. 26 October 1996. Retrieved 26 July 2011.
9. ^ Rentoul, John (26 July 1996). "A rare national treasure in peril". The Independent.
10. ^ "Opposition Frontbench Spokespersons as at 13 May 1997 (Interim List)". Weekly Information Bulletin. House of Commons Information Office. Retrieved 1 October 2011.
11. ^ "Hague reshuffles shadow cabinet". BBC News. 1 June 1998. Retrieved 10 March 2013.
12. ^ "Lilley sacked in Hague reshuffle". The Guardian. 15 June 1999. Retrieved 10 March 2013.
13. ^ "Eurosceptics prosper under Duncan Smith". BBC News. 14 September 2001. Retrieved 10 March 2013.
14. ^ "Opposition Front Bench Team as at 16 October 2001". Weekly Information Bulletin. House of Commons Information Office. 20 October 2001. Retrieved 10 March 2013.
15. ^ "Tory shadow cabinet". The Telegraph. 23 July 2002. Retrieved 10 March 2013.
16. ^ "Howard reshuffles his Tory team". BBC News. 14 June 2004. Retrieved 10 March 2013.
17. ^ a b "Redwood returns to Tory frontline". BBC News. 8 September 2004. Retrieved 10 March 2013.
18. ^ "Howard reshuffles top Tory team". BBC News. 10 May 2005. Retrieved 10 March 2013.
19. ^ "At-a-glance: New shadow cabinet". BBC News. 8 December 2005. Retrieved 10 March 2013.
20. ^ "In full: Cameron's shadow cabinet". BBC News. 2 July 2007. Retrieved 10 March 2013.
21. ^ "EXCLUSIVE: 'Bitter-sweet' promotion for Sadiq Khan MP". Wandsworth Guardian. 14 May 2010. Retrieved 10 March 2013.
22. ^ Prince, Rosa (8 October 2010). "Ed Miliband unveils shocks in shadow cabinet selections". The Telegraph. Retrieved 10 March 2013.
23. ^ Owen, Paul (7 October 2013). "Coalition government and Labour reshuffle". The Guardian. Retrieved 7 October 2013.
24. ^ "Labour reshuffle: Dugher and Powell promoted by Ed Miliband". BBC News. 5 November 2014. Retrieved 12 December 2014.

* v
* t
* e

His Majesty's Official Opposition Shadow Cabinet

Official Opposition frontbench

Current|

* Leader of the Opposition
* Shadow Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster
* Shadow Deputy Prime Minister
* Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer
* Shadow Home Secretary
* Shadow Foreign Secretary
* Shadow Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster / Shadow Minister for the Cabinet Office
* Shadow Defence Secretary
* Shadow Education Secretary
* Shadow Justice Secretary / Shadow Lord Chancellor
* Shadow Attorney General
* Shadow Secretary of State for Health and Social Care
* Shadow Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero
* Shadow Secretary of State for Business and Trade
* Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
* Shadow Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Secretary
* Shadow Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology
* Shadow Secretary of State for Transport
* Shadow Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government
* Shadow Leader of the House of Commons
* Shadow Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
* Shadow Leader of the House of Lords
* Shadow Scottish Secretary
* Shadow Welsh Secretary
* Shadow Northern Ireland Secretary
* Shadow Minister for Women and Equalities
* Shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury
* Shadow Paymaster General
* Shadow Minister for Security
* Shadow Minister for Veterans
* Opposition Chief Whip

Former|

* Shadow Cabinet Minister for International Development
* Shadow Minister without Portfolio
* Shadow Minister of State at the Cabinet Office
* Shadow Cabinet Minister for Mental Health
* Shadow Secretary of State for Housing
* Shadow Secretary of State for Young People and Democracy
* Shadow Secretary of State for Child Poverty
* Shadow Secretary of State for Employment Rights and Protections
* Shadow Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union
* Shadow Secretary of State for the Family
* Shadow Secretary of State for the Future of Work

*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template