An Inside Look at Sir Keir Starmer’s Top Team: Meet the Key Players in the New Cabinet Arrangement
The Labour leader chose minimal change in appointing his new cabinet. Ministers mostly keep their briefs from before the election.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has announced much of his new cabinet, hours after taking power in a landslide victory.Meet the Key Players in the New Cabinet Arrangement
Here’s who the new prime minister has appointed:
Angela Rayner
Ms Rayner has been Sir Keir Starmer’s deputy since he was elected Labour leader in 2020.
She also becomes the leveling-up secretary—a shadow brief that she also held.
Born and raised on a council estate in Stockport, Greater Manchester, she had her first child at the age of 16, crediting New Labour’s Sure Start policy with ensuring her life “wasn’t written off”.
She worked as a carer and then a trade union leader before entering party politics.
Earlier this year, she faced questions over the sale of her council house, but police and tax authorities confirmed there had been no wrongdoing.
Rachel Reeves
Ms Reeves worked for the Bank of England and then HBOS before entering the Commons in 2010.
As a teenager growing up in Lewisham, south London, she won the British under-14 chess championship before going to study at Oxford.
She says she turned down a job at Goldman Sachs, despite the fact it would have made her “much richer”.
Ms. Reeves took over as shadow chancellor in May 2021, and along with Sir Keir, she has helped reshape Labour’s relationship with the business community and has stressed the importance of fiscal discipline. Her younger sister, Ellie Reeves, is also a Labour MP.
Meet the Key Players in the New Cabinet Arrangement
Yvette Cooper
Ms. Cooper and her husband, Ed Balls, are both veterans of New Labour, having had various ministerial roles under Sir Tony Blair and Gordon Brown.
Ms. Cooper’s experience included being chief secretary to the Treasury, work and pensions secretary, as well as health and housing minister. While at the Department of Health, she was the first minister in the UK to ever take maternity leave.
She ran for the Labour leadership against Jeremy Corbyn in 2016, coming third to Corbyn and Andy Burnham.
Meet the Key Players in the New Cabinet Arrangement
David Lammy
Mr. Lammy has represented Tottenham, where he grew up, since 2000, when he won the by-election triggered by the death of Labour’s Bernie Grant.
He was the first black Briton to attend Harvard Law School, where he met and befriended Barack Obama.
Under New Labour, he served as minister for higher education and culture. By contrast, he endorsed his friend Jeremy Corbyn for party leadership in 2016.
Mr Lammy has written widely about the 2011 London riots, which began in his constituency. He has also condemned Oxford University for not accepting enough black and ethnic minority students.
Meet the Key Players in the New Cabinet Arrangement
Pat McFadden
A veteran of the Blair years, Mr McFadden has emerged as a key figure in Sir Keir’s inner circle. As Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, he will take a co-ordinating role at the centre of government and will have responsibility for making key decisions.
He is one of the few members of the new cabinet that has experience serving in government; under Gordon Brown, he served as parliamentary undersecretary at the Cabinet Office and later as a minister in the business department.
Meet the Key Players in the New Cabinet Arrangement
Shabana Mahmood
Ms Mahmood became the first female Muslim in the House of Commons when she was elected in 2010.
She was born in her Birmingham constituency, where her father later became chairman of the local Labour Party. The family spent her first seven years in Saudi Arabia while he worked as a civil engineer, however.
She didn’t leave Labour when Sir Tony Blair backed the invasion of Iraq, instead running to replace her local MP when she did. She has spoken widely about Sir Keir Starmer’s perceived shortcomings on the situation in Gaza.
Meet the Key Players in the New Cabinet Arrangement
Wes Streeting
Wes Streeting was elected to the marginal seat of Ilford North with just 589 votes in 2015, having served as deputy leader of the local council.
He was raised on a council estate in London’s East End. His maternal grandparents both spent time in prison, with his grandmother frequenting Christine Keeler while behind bars.
Mr Streeting was a vocal critic of Jeremy Corbyn and has received criticism for some of his policies on the NHS, which he credits with saving his life after he was diagnosed with kidney cancer.
Meet the Key Players in the New Cabinet Arrangement
Bridget Phillipson
Ms Phillipson was brought up on a council estate in the North East of England, where she said in an interview she was “bullied for being poor”.
After her mother enrolled her in Saturday drama school, she got a background role in BBC children’s show Byker Grove.
Before going into politics, she managed the women’s refuge that her mother set up while she was at school.
Elected in 2010, she became shadow education secretary the following year, promoting a wider rollout of school breakfast clubs and hoping to “break the class ceiling” for young people through education.
Meet the Key Players in the New Cabinet Arrangement
Ed Miliband
Mr Miliband has been the MP for Doncaster North since 2005 and has played a big role in Labour politics.
He was a special adviser to Gordon Brown while he was chancellor, while his brother, David, worked for Sir Tony.
In 2010, he was elected Labour leader in a fractious contest with his brother. He stayed on until 2015, when he resigned following the party’s general election defeat that year.
He is said to have a close personal relationship with Sir Keir, whom he helped with his campaign to become an MP back in 2015.
Meet the Key Players in the New Cabinet Arrangement
Peter Kyle
Peter Kyle overcame struggles with severe dyslexia to return to school at the age of 25 and ultimately get a PhD in community economic development.
He was chair of the business, energy, and industrial strategy select committee and part of the public inquiry into the collapse of Carillion and Thomas Cook.
Before politics, he worked as an aid worker in the Balkans, setting up an orphanage in Romania, and working as a cabinet office adviser on social exclusion on his return to the UK.
In 2012, his long-term partner and his mother died one day apart from each other.
Meet the Key Players in the New Cabinet Arrangement
Louise Haigh
Louise Haigh has been an MP, where she grew up in Sheffield, since 2015.
Both her grandfather and uncle were trade union officials.
She worked in parliament as a coordinator while volunteering as a special constable with the Met Police in Brixton, south London, before becoming an MP.
This set her up for being shadow policing minister under Jeremy Corbyn.
Although she endorsed the former Labour leader, she now says she regrets the decision, backing Andy Burnham, Lisa Nandy, and Jess Phillips for successive leadership bids.
Meet the Key Players in the New Cabinet Arrangement
Liz Kendall
Liz Kendall came last in the Labour leadership contest that saw Jeremy Corbyn elected in 2015.
Before she entered parliament five years earlier, she worked for various think tanks and charities with a focus on health and social care, including the Ambulance Service Network and Maternity Alliance.
She ventured in and out of politics, advising former caretaker Labour leader Harriet Harman and former health secretary Patricia Hewitt.
In the shadow cabinet under Sir Keir, she has had a health and social care and pensions brief.
Outside of politics, she dated comedian Greg Davies.
Meet the Key Players in the New Cabinet Arrangement
Jonathan Reynolds
Jonathan Reynolds’ political career began as an assistant to a Labour councillor in Stockport.
Although he had aspirations of becoming a lawyer, they were put on hold when he became a father in his early 20s.
After stints as a councillor and a parliamentary assistant, he successfully ran to replace his boss, James Purnell MP, when he announced he was stepping down.
He has two dogs named Kennedy and Clinton and employs his wife as a senior parliamentary assistant.
Meet the Key Players in the New Cabinet Arrangement
John Healey
Another veteran of the Blair years, John Healey became parliamentary under-secretary of state for adult skills as soon as he was elected as an MP in 1997.
His father received an OBE for his lifelong work countering violence and aggression.
Throughout New Labour, he was financial secretary to the Treasury, minister for local government, and for housing.
He voted in favour of UK involvement in the Iraq War and has visited Ukraine, where he promised Labour’s commitment would be “ironclad”. He has matched the previous government’s commitment to raise defence spending from just over 2% of GDP to 2.5% by 2030.
Meet the Key Players in the New Cabinet Arrangement
Steve Reed
Steve Reed, the former leader of Lambeth council, was elected to parliament in the 2012 by-election for Croydon North, which was changed to Streatham and Croydon North at this election.
He has held a number of shadow cabinet roles, including shadow levelling up secretary and shadow justice secretary, before he was appointed shadow environment secretary, a role he now holds in cabinet.
Meet the Key Players in the New Cabinet Arrangement
Lisa Nandy
Lisa Nandy was re-elected as the MP for Wigan, a constituency she has represented since 2010.
Ms Nandy ran against Sir Keir in the Labour leadership contest that took place after Jeremy Corbyn quit following the disastrous 2019 general election defeat.
She has held a number of shadow cabinet roles, including as shadow international development secretary and shadow foreign secretary.
Ms. Nandy has now been appointed as shadow culture secretary, replacing Thangam Debbonaire, who lost the seat of Bristol Central to the Greens.
Meet the Key Players in the New Cabinet Arrangement
Hilary Benn
Hilary Benn is the son of the late left-wing minister and campaigner Tony Benn, who served under prime ministers Harold Wilson and James Callaghan.
On his by-election campaign trail, he famously set himself apart from his father, describing himself as a “Benn, not a Bennite.”.
His role as Northern Ireland secretary comes after a stint as chair of the Commons Brexit committee, where he was heavily involved in the UK withdrawal and ensuing border issues in Ireland.
He also has previous experience as a cabinet minister, first entering under Blair as international development secretary in 2003.
Meet the Key Players in the New Cabinet Arrangement
Ian Murray
Ian Murray was brought up on a council estate on the outskirts of Edinburgh. This is where his childhood experiences took place. He attributed the “failures” of his local MP, Malcolm Rifkind, to not addressing damp issues in his childhood home. This experience motivated him to get into politics.
After serving on Edinburgh Council, he was elected as MP for Edinburgh South. This came following the downfall of his predecessor, Nigel Griffith, in a sex scandal.
He resigned from the shadow cabinet after the Brexit referendum, joining the ranks of Labour MPs who opposed Jeremy Corbyn as an ardent critic.
Describing himself as a “lifelong” opponent of the Trident nuclear programme, he may struggle to fall in line with Sir Keir Starmer’s commitment to maintain it.
He voted for Scotland to remain as part of the UK in the 2014 Scottish independence referendum and reported “hostilities” from the ‘yes’ campaign.
Meet the Key Players in the New Cabinet Arrangement
Jo Stevens
Jo Stevens served as shadow Wales secretary under both Jeremy Corbyn and Sir Keir Starmer.
Corbyn imposed a three-line whip on the government’s EU withdrawal bill. She couldn’t comply with it as a “passionate European,” so she resigned.
She is largely a unionist and against devolution of issues such as policing and gender recognition.
Before the election campaign, her office was vandalised after she abstained from the motion on a ceasefire in Gaza.
Meet the Key Players in the New Cabinet Arrangement
Lucy Powell
Lucy Powell was elected as the MP for Manchester Central in the by-election. She became the first female MP to represent Manchester in this constituency.
She will take on the role of leader of the Commons. In this position, she is responsible for delivering Sir Keir’s legislative agenda in the Commons. Keep MPs updated about forthcoming business and debate in the Commons Chamber.
Previous roles she has held include shadow education secretary under Jeremy Corbyn and as shadow culture secretary under Sir Keir.
Meet the Key Players in the New Cabinet Arrangement
Darren Jones
He has only been in parliament since 20NUM. Darren Jones has been widely touted as one of Labor’s rising stars.
Born and bred in his Bristol constituency, he worked in the NHS before training as a lawyer.
He made an unsuccessful bid for parliament in 2010, becoming an active union member instead.
During the campaign on social media, he gained traction for his “candid” posts about life in politics. A leaked recording revealed that he said Labour’s net-zero plans would cost “hundreds of billions.” The party was forced to make clarifications as a result.
In his free time, he enjoys cooking vegan meals. He also plays the saxophone as a hobby.
Meet the Key Players in the New Cabinet Arrangement
Sir Alan Campbell
Sir Alan Campbell is a Labour stalwart who was first elected in 1997 for the constituency of Tynemouth.
He has experience in government. also He served as a minister in the home office under Mr. Brown.
He continues to hold the position of chief whip, which involves overseeing party discipline and the whipping system. This role ensures that MPs attend votes and align their voting choices with the leadership.
Meet the Key Players in the New Cabinet Arrangement
Richard Hermer, KC
Richard Hermer is a high-profile human rights lawyer from Matrix Chambers.
He assumes the role of attorney general, the chief legal adviser to the government.
He replaces Emily Thornberry, who has held the role since November 2021.
Since 2021, Emily Thornberry has served as a shadow attorney general. The role was expected to go to her.
Ms. Thornberry was criticized by the Tories during the election campaign. They disputed her claim that ending tax breaks for private schools would result in bigger classes in state schools.
Mr. Hermer is not an MP. He will be made a peer in the House of Lords to serve in his role.
Meet the Key Players in the New Cabinet Arrangement
Baroness Smith of Basildon
Baroness Smith represented Basildon as its MP from Num to Num. During this period, she served as parliamentary private secretary to Mr. Brown when he was prime minister.
She lost her seat in NUMThen the Conservatives renamed South Basildon and East Thurrock. Shortly afterwards, she was appointed to the House of Lords.
In 2015, she served as the leader of the opposition in the Lords. This is a role that will be transferred to its equivalent in the government.
As the House of Lords leader, Baroness Smith will lead government benches in the upper chamber. She will be responsible for government business in the upper chamber.
Meet the Key Players in the New Cabinet Arrangement
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