Secretary of State for Wales
 | This articleneeds additional citations forverification.(May 2010) |
| United Kingdom Secretary of State for Wales | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Office of the Secretary of State for Wales | |
| Style | Welsh Secretary (informal) The Right Honourable (within the UK and Commonwealth) |
| Type | Minister of the Crown |
| Status | Secretary of State |
| Member of | |
| Reports to | The Prime Minister |
| Seat | Westminster |
| Nominator | The Prime Minister |
| Appointer | The Monarch (on the advice of thePrime Minister) |
| Term length | At His Majesty's pleasure |
| Formation |
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| First holder | David Maxwell Fyfe (as Minister of Welsh Affairs) |
| Salary | £159,038 per annum(2022)[1] (including £86,584MPsalary)[2] |
| Website | Official website |
| This article is part ofa serieswithin the Politics of the United Kingdomon the |
| Politics of Wales |
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Thesecretary of state for Wales(Welsh:ysgrifennydd gwladol Cymru), also referred to as theWelsh secretary,is asecretary of statein theGovernment of the United Kingdom,with responsibility for theWales Office.The incumbent is a member of theCabinet of the United Kingdom.
The officeholder works alongside the other Wales Office ministers. The correspondingshadow ministeris theshadow secretary of state for Wales.The position is currently held byJo Stevenshaving been appointed byKeir Starmerin July 2024.
Creation
[edit]In the first half of the 20th century, a number of politicians had supported the creation of the post of Secretary of State for Wales as a step towardshome rulefor Wales. A post of Minister of Welsh Affairs was created in 1951 under thehome secretaryand was upgraded tominister of statelevel in 1954.
TheLabour Partyproposed the creation of aWelsh Officerun by a Secretary of State for Wales in their manifesto for the1959 general election.When they came to power in 1964 this was soon put into effect.
The post of Secretary of State for Wales came into existence on 17 October 1964; the first incumbent wasJim Griffiths,MP forLlanelli.The position entailed responsibility for Wales, and expenditure on certain public services was delegated fromWestminster.In April 1965 administration of Welsh affairs, which had previously been divided between a number ofgovernment departments,was united in a newly createdWelsh Officewith the secretary of state for Wales at its head, and the Welsh secretary became responsible for education and training, health, trade and industry, environment, transport and agriculture within Wales.
History
[edit]During the 1980s and 1990s, as the number ofConservativeMPs for Welsh constituencies dwindled almost to zero, the office fell into disrepute.Nicholas Edwards,MP forPembrokeshire,held the post for eight years. On his departure, the government ceased to look within Wales for the secretary of state, and the post was increasingly used as a way of getting junior high-fliers into theCabinet.John Redwoodin particular caused embarrassment when he publicly demonstrated his inability to sing "Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau",the Welshnational anthem,at a conference.
The introduction of theNational Assembly for Walesand theWelsh Government,after thedevolutionreferendumof 1997, was the beginning of a new era. On 1 July 1999 the majority of the functions of the Welsh Office transferred to the new assembly. The Welsh Office was disbanded, but the post of Secretary of State for Wales was retained, as the head of the newly created Wales Office.
Since 1999 there have been calls for the office of Welsh secretary to be scrapped or merged with the posts ofSecretary of State for ScotlandandSecretary of State for Northern Ireland,to reflect the lesser powers of the role since devolution.[3][4]Those calling for a Secretary of State for the Union include Robert Hazell,[5]in a department into whichRodney Brazierhas suggested adding a Minister of State for England with responsibility forEnglish local government.[6]
In June 2024,Plaid Cymru,the Welsh nationalist party, called for the position's abolishment describing it as "outdated", that it "entrench[es]" a power imbalance, and its powers should be devolved. The party's representatives accused theshadow Labour holder,Jo Stevens,of having a "contemptuous attitude towards devolution" based on Stevens' comments relating toHigh Speed 2andjustice and policing.The Conservative incumbentDavid TC Daviesexpressed his surprise, stating that the "so-called 'party of Wales' is now wanting to silence Wales' voice [in the cabinet]".[7]In Plaid Cymru's motion on 26 June, calling for the post's abolishment, leader of theWelsh Conservatives,Andrew RT Davies,supported the motion after being confused it was a Tory amendment being voted on.[8]
Ministers and secretaries of state
[edit]Colour key
Conservative
National Liberal
Labour
Timeline
[edit]
Note
[edit]- ^Redwood resigned to stand in the1995 Conservative leadership election.During the election, Hunt acted as Secretary of State.
- ^Resigned following what he described as a"moment of madness"onClapham Common.
- ^Following implementation of theGovernment of Wales Act 1998,and the1999 Assembly election,Michael held office as inauguralFirst Secretary for Walesfrom 12 May 1999.
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^"Salaries of Members of His Majesty's Government – Financial Year 2022–23"(PDF).15 December 2022.
- ^"Pay and expenses for MPs".parliament.uk.Retrieved15 December2022.
- ^"'Scrap Welsh secretary' demand ".BBC News. 19 March 2001.Retrieved7 June2010.
- ^"Wales Office in melting pot".BBC News. 12 June 2003.Retrieved7 June2010.
- ^"Times letters: Mark Sedwill's call for a cull of the cabinet".The Times.30 July 2020.ISSN0140-0460.
- ^"Rodney Brazier: Why is Her Majesty's Government so big?".UK Constitutional Law Association.7 September 2020.Retrieved30 November2020.
- ^Price, Emily (25 June 2024)."Plaid Cymru calls for next UK Govt to axe Secretary of State for Wales role".Nation.Cymru.Retrieved28 June2024.
- ^Price, Emily (27 June 2024)."Andrew RT Davies votes to abolish Secretary of State role".Nation.Cymru.Retrieved28 June2024.
- ^"Cabinet reshuffle: Simon Hart appointed new Welsh secretary".BBC News.16 December 2019.Retrieved17 December2019.
External links
[edit]- Labour Party in Wales – covers the history of the post
- Hain promoted in Brown's cabinet,BBC News Online, 28 June 2007
- Hain takes work and pensions job,BBC News Online, 28 June 2007
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