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United Kingdom Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
Royal Arms of His Majesty's Government
Incumbent Mel Stride since 25 October 2022
Department for Work and Pensions
Style	Work and Pensions Secretary (informal) The Right Honourable (within the UK and Commonwealth)
Type	Minister of the Crown
Status	Secretary of State
Member of	Cabinet Privy Council
Reports to	The Prime Minister
Seat	Westminster
Nominator	The Prime Minister
Appointer	The Monarch (on the advice of the Prime Minister)
Term length	At His Majesty's Pleasure
Formation	10 December 1916: (as Minister for Pensions) 8 June 2001: (as Secretary of State for Work and Pensions)
First holder	George Barnes (as Minister for Pensions)
Deputy	Minister of State for Employment
Salary	£159,038 per annum (2022)^[1] (including £86,584 MP salary)^[2]

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v t e

The secretary of state for work and pensions, also referred to as the work and pensions secretary, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, with overall responsibility for the business of the Department for Work and Pensions.^[3] The incumbent is a member of the Cabinet of the United Kingdom.

The office holder works alongside the other Work and Pensions ministers. The corresponding shadow minister is the shadow secretary of state for work and pensions and the shadow secretary of state for the future of work. The performance of the secretary of state is also scrutinised by the Work and Pensions Select Committee.

The office is currently held by Mel Stride.

Responsibilities

Corresponding to what is generally known as a labour minister in many other countries, the work and pensions secretary's remit includes:

Support people of working age
Oversight of employers and pensions
Fiscal Consolidation
Providing support for disability
Support for families and children^[4]

History

It was created on 8 June 2001 by the merger of the Employment division of the Department for Education and Employment and the Department of Social Security.^[5]

The Ministry of Pensions was created in 1916 to handle the payment of war pensions to former members of the Armed Forces and their dependants. In 1944 a separate Ministry of National Insurance (titled the Ministry of Social Insurance until 17 November 1944) was formed; the two merged in 1953 as the Ministry of Pensions and National Insurance.^[5] In 1966 the Ministry was renamed the Ministry of Social Security, but this was short-lived, as the Ministry merged with the Ministry of Health in 1968 to form the Department of Health and Social Security. Confusingly, the Secretary of State responsible for this Department was titled the Secretary of State for Social Services. The Department was de-merged in 1988, creating the separate Department of Health and Department of Social Security.

List of ministers and secretaries of state

Colour key (for political parties):
Labour / Conservative / Liberal / National Labour / National Independent

Minister of Pensions (1916–1953)[edit]
Minister		Term of office		Political party	Prime Minister
	George Nicoll Barnes	10 December 1916	17 August 1917	Labour		David Lloyd George (Coalition)
	John Hodge	17 August 1917	10 January 1919	Labour
	Laming Worthington-Evans	10 January 1919	2 April 1920	Conservative
	Ian Macpherson	2 April 1920	19 October 1922	Liberal
	George Tryon	31 October 1922	22 January 1924	Conservative		Bonar Law
	George Tryon	31 October 1922	22 January 1924	Conservative		Stanley Baldwin
	Frederick Roberts	23 January 1924	3 November 1924	Labour		Ramsay MacDonald
	George Tryon	11 November 1924	4 June 1929	Conservative		Stanley Baldwin
	Frederick Roberts	7 June 1929	24 August 1931	Labour		Ramsay MacDonald
	George Tryon	3 September 1931	18 June 1935	Conservative		Ramsay MacDonald (1st & 2nd National Min.)
	Robert Hudson	18 June 1935	30 July 1936	Conservative		Stanley Baldwin (3rd National Min.)
	Herwald Ramsbotham	30 July 1936	7 June 1939	Conservative		Stanley Baldwin (3rd National Min.)
	Herwald Ramsbotham	30 July 1936	7 June 1939	Conservative		Neville Chamberlain (4th Nat.Min.; War Coalition)
	Walter Womersley	7 June 1939	26 July 1945	Conservative		Neville Chamberlain (4th Nat.Min.; War Coalition)
	Walter Womersley	7 June 1939	26 July 1945	Conservative		Winston Churchill (War Coalition; Caretaker Min.)
	Wilfred Paling	3 August 1945	17 April 1947	Labour		Clement Attlee
	John Burns Hynd	17 April 1947	7 October 1947	Labour
	George Buchanan	7 October 1947	2 July 1948	Labour
	Hilary Marquand	2 July 1948	17 January 1951	Labour
	George Isaacs	17 January 1951	26 October 1951	Labour
	Derick Heathcoat-Amory	5 November 1951	3 September 1953	Conservative		Winston Churchill
Minister of Social Insurance/National Insurance (1944–1953)[edit]
Minister		Term of office		Political party	Prime Minister
	William Jowitt	8 October 1944	23 May 1945	Labour		Winston Churchill (War Coalition)
	Leslie Hore-Belisha	25 May 1945	26 July 1945	National Independent		Winston Churchill (Caretaker Min.)
	Jim Griffiths	4 August 1945	28 February 1950	Labour		Clement Attlee
	Edith Summerskill	28 February 1950	26 October 1951	Labour		Clement Attlee
	Osbert Peake	31 October 1951	3 September 1953	Conservative		Winston Churchill
Posts of Minister of Pensions and Minister of National Insurance merged in 1953.
Minister of Pensions and National Insurance (1953–1966)[edit]
Minister		Term of office		Political party	Prime Minister
	Osbert Peake	3 September 1953	20 December 1955	Conservative		Winston Churchill
	Osbert Peake	3 September 1953	20 December 1955	Conservative		Anthony Eden
	John Boyd-Carpenter	20 December 1955	16 July 1962	Conservative		Anthony Eden
	John Boyd-Carpenter	20 December 1955	16 July 1962	Conservative		Harold Macmillan
	Niall Macpherson	16 July 1962	21 October 1963	Conservative		Harold Macmillan
	Richard Wood	21 October 1963	16 October 1964	Conservative		Alec Douglas-Home
	Margaret Herbison	18 October 1964	6 August 1966	Labour		Harold Wilson
Minister of Social Security (1966–1968)[edit]
Minister		Term of office		Political party	Prime Minister
	Margaret Herbison	6 August 1966	26 July 1967	Labour		Harold Wilson
	Judith Hart	26 July 1967	1 November 1968	Labour		Harold Wilson
Secretary of State for Health and Social Services (1968–1988)[edit]
Secretary of State		Term of office		Political party	Prime Minister
	Richard Crossman	1 November 1968	19 June 1970	Labour		Harold Wilson
	Keith Joseph	20 June 1970	4 March 1974	Conservative		Edward Heath
	Barbara Castle	5 March 1974	8 April 1976	Labour		Harold Wilson
	David Ennals	8 April 1976	4 May 1979	Labour		James Callaghan
	Patrick Jenkin^[6]	5 May 1979	13 September 1981	Conservative		Margaret Thatcher
	Norman Fowler^[7]	14 September 1981	13 June 1987	Conservative
	John Moore^[8]	13 June 1987	24 July 1988	Conservative
Post split into the Secretary of State for Social Security and the Secretary of State for Health in 1988.
Secretary of State for Social Security (1988–2001)[edit]
Secretary of State		Term of office		Political party	Prime Minister
	John Moore^[8]	25 July 1988	22 July 1989	Conservative		Margaret Thatcher
	Tony Newton^[9]	23 July 1989	9 April 1992	Conservative		Margaret Thatcher
	Tony Newton^[9]	23 July 1989	9 April 1992	Conservative		John Major
	Peter Lilley^[10]	10 April 1992	1 May 1997	Conservative		John Major
	Harriet Harman^[11]	1 May 1997	27 July 1998	Labour		Tony Blair
	Alistair Darling^[12]	27 July 1998	8 June 2001	Labour		Tony Blair
Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (2001–present)[edit]
Secretary of State		Term of office		Political party	Prime Minister
	Alistair Darling^[12]	8 June 2001	29 May 2002	Labour		Tony Blair
	Andrew Smith^[13]	29 May 2002	8 September 2004	Labour
	Alan Johnson^[14]	8 September 2004	6 May 2005	Labour
	David Blunkett^[15]	6 May 2005	2 November 2005	Labour
	John Hutton^[16]	2 November 2005	28 June 2007	Labour
	Peter Hain^[17]	28 June 2007	24 January 2008	Labour		Gordon Brown
	James Purnell^[18] MP for Stalybridge and Hyde	24 January 2008	5 June 2009	Labour
	Yvette Cooper^[19] MP for Normanton, Pontefract and Castleford	6 June 2009	6 May 2010	Labour
	Iain Duncan Smith^[20] MP for Chingford and Woodford Green	12 May 2010	18 March 2016	Conservative		David Cameron (Coalition)
	Iain Duncan Smith^[20] MP for Chingford and Woodford Green	Duncan Smith's tenure		Conservative		David Cameron (II)
	Stephen Crabb^[21] MP for Preseli Pembrokeshire	19 March 2016	14 July 2016	Conservative		David Cameron (II)
	Damian Green^[22] MP for Ashford	14 July 2016	11 June 2017	Conservative		Theresa May (I)
	David Gauke^[23] MP for South West Hertfordshire	11 June 2017	8 January 2018	Conservative		Theresa May (II)
	Esther McVey^[24] MP for Tatton	8 January 2018	15 November 2018	Conservative
	Amber Rudd^[25] MP for Hastings and Rye	16 November 2018	7 September 2019	Conservative
	Amber Rudd^[25] MP for Hastings and Rye	16 November 2018	7 September 2019	Conservative		Boris Johnson (I)
	Thérèse Coffey^[26] MP for Coastal Suffolk	8 September 2019	6 September 2022	Conservative		Boris Johnson (I)
	Thérèse Coffey^[26] MP for Coastal Suffolk	8 September 2019	6 September 2022	Conservative		Boris Johnson (II)
	Chloe Smith^[27] MP for Norwich North	6 September 2022	25 October 2022	Conservative		Liz Truss (I)
	Mel Stride MP for Central Devon	25 October 2022	Incumbent	Conservative		Rishi Sunak (I)

* Incumbent's length of term last updated: 2 May 2024.

References

^ "Salaries of Members of His Majesty's Government – Financial Year 2022–23" (PDF). 15 December 2022.
^ "Pay and expenses for MPs". parliament.uk. Retrieved 15 December 2022.
^ "Secretary of State for Work and Pensions". gov.uk. Retrieved 30 June 2021.
^ "Secretary of State for Work and Pensions - GOV.UK".
^ ^a ^b Department for Work and Pensions. "A century of support: Department for Work and Pensions turns 100 years old". Department for Work and Pensions. Retrieved 29 May 2019.
^ "Lord Jenkin of Roding". UK Parliament. Retrieved 10 September 2021.
^ "Lord Fowler". UK Parliament. Retrieved 10 September 2021.
^ ^a ^b "Lord Moore of Lower Marsh". UK Parliament. Retrieved 10 September 2021.
^ "Lord Newton of Braintree". UK Parliament. Retrieved 10 September 2021.
^ "Lord Lilley". UK Parliament. Retrieved 10 September 2021.
^ "Rt Hon Harriet Harman QC MP". UK Parliament. Retrieved 10 September 2021.
^ ^a ^b "Lord Darling of Roulanish". UK Parliament. Retrieved 10 September 2021.
^ "Rt Hon Andrew Smith". UK Parliament. Retrieved 10 September 2021.
^ "Rt Hon Alan Johnson". UK Parliament. Retrieved 10 September 2021.
^ "Lord Blunkett". UK Parliament. Retrieved 10 September 2021.
^ "Lord Hutton of Furness". UK Parliament. Retrieved 10 September 2021.
^ "Lord Hain". UK Parliament. Retrieved 31 August 2021.
^ "James Purnell". UK Parliament. Retrieved 31 August 2021.
^ "Rt Hon Yvette Cooper MP". UK Parliament. Retrieved 31 August 2021.
^ "Rt Hon Sir Iain Duncan Smith MP". UK Parliament. Retrieved 31 August 2021.
^ "Rt Hon Stephen Crabb MP". UK Parliament. Retrieved 31 August 2021.
^ "Rt Hon Damian Green MP". UK Parliament. Retrieved 31 August 2021.
^ "Rt Hon David Gauke". UK Parliament. Retrieved 31 August 2021.
^ "Rt Hon Esther McVey MP". UK Parliament. Retrieved 31 August 2021.
^ "Rt Hon Amber Rudd". UK Parliament. Retrieved 31 August 2021.
^ "Rt Hon Dr Thérèse Coffey MP". UK Parliament. Retrieved 31 August 2021.
^ "Chloe Smith MP". Retrieved 6 September 2022.

v t e Secretaries of State for Work and Pensions of the United Kingdom
Ministers of Pensions	Barnes Hodge Worthington-Evans Macpherson Tryon Roberts Tryon Roberts Tryon Hudson Ramsbotham Womersley Paling Hynd Buchanan Marquand Isaacs Heathcoat-Amory
Ministers of Social Insurance/National Insurance	Jowitt Hore-Belisha Griffiths Summerskill Peake
Ministers of Pensions and National Insurance	Peake Boyd-Carpenter Macpherson Wood Herbison
Ministers of Social Security	Herbison Hart
Secretaries of State for Social Services	Crossman Joseph Castle Ennals Jenkin Fowler Moore
Secretaries of State for Social Security	Moore Newton Lilley Harman Darling
Secretaries of State for Work and Pensions	Darling A. Smith Johnson Blunkett Hutton Hain Purnell Cooper Duncan Smith Crabb Green Gauke McVey Rudd Coffey C. Smith Stride

v t e UK cabinet portfolios
Cabinet of the United Kingdom
Cabinet ministers	Prime Minister / First Lord of the Treasury / Minister for the Union / Minister for the Civil Service Deputy Prime Minister / Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster / Secretary of State in the Cabinet Office. Chancellor of the Exchequer Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Secretary Home Secretary Defence Secretary Energy Security and Net Zero Secretary Justice Secretary / Lord Chancellor Science, Innovation and Technology Secretary Levelling Up, Housing and Communities Secretary / Minister for Intergovernmental Relations Health and Social Care Secretary Lord President of the Council / Leader of the House of Commons Leader of the House of Lords / Lord Privy Seal Business and Trade Secretary / President of the Board of Trade / Minister for Women and Equalities Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Secretary Work and Pensions Secretary Education Secretary Transport Secretary Culture, Media and Sport Secretary Minister without portfolio Northern Ireland Secretary Scottish Secretary Welsh Secretary
Also attending Cabinet	Chief Whip / Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury Chief Secretary to the Treasury Attorney General for England and Wales / Advocate General for Northern Ireland Minister for the Cabinet Office / Paymaster General Minister of State for Immigration Minister of State for Security Minister of State for Development and Africa Minister of State for the Armed Forces and Veterans

Responsibilities

History

List of ministers and secretaries of state

Minister of Pensions (1916–1953)[edit]

Minister of Social Insurance/National Insurance (1944–1953)[edit]

Minister of Pensions and National Insurance (1953–1966)[edit]

Minister of Social Security (1966–1968)[edit]

Secretary of State for Health and Social Services (1968–1988)[edit]

Secretary of State for Social Security (1988–2001)[edit]

Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (2001–present)[edit]

See also

References