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2023 British shadow cabinet reshuffle

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This is an old revision of this page, as edited by I Am Happy Being a Loner (talk | contribs) at 10:17, 5 September 2023 (Preet Gill was not re-appointed in the reshuffle). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Not to be confused with 2023 British cabinet reshuffle.

Keir Starmer, Leader of the Opposition

On 4 September 2023, Keir Starmer, Leader of the UK Labour Party and Leader of the Opposition, carried out a reshuffle of his shadow cabinet.[1][2] This is the same week that Members of Parliament return to Westminster following their summer break.[3][4] This was his third major reshuiffle.[5]

Background

The last shadow cabinet reshuffle was carried out in November 2021.[6] Since then the Labour Party has performed strongly in opinion polls in the lead up to the next general election.[7] Labour gains in the by-elections in Wakefield and Selby and Ainsty consolidated their electoral performance as did the 2022 local elections.[8] In August 2023, it was speculated in the media that Deputy Leader of the Labour Party Angela Rayner could have her responsibilities changed.[9] It was reported that most "big guns" were considered to be safe.[10] The reshuffle coincided with the appointment of Sue Gray as Chief of Staff to Keir Starmer.[11]

Changes

Sue Gray took a leading role in the reshuffle.[12] It included the promotion of Blairites Hilary Benn and Pat McFadden who served under Tony Blair and Gordon Brown.[13] Lisa Nandy lost her role as Shadow Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities to become a junior shadow foreign office minister, which was described as "unambiguously a demotion".[14] Fellow Greater Manchester MP Angela Rayner became the new shadow levelling up secretary[12] and was also given the new role of Shadow Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.[15] This consolidated her role in any future Labour government.[16] Gray was involved in negotations with Rayner over her position.[12]

Hilary Benn returned to the Shadow Cabinet as Shadow Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, for the first time since he resigned as Shadow Foreign Secretary in 2016 under Jeremy Corbyn.[17] Jim McMahon and left the shadow cabinet for the backbenches.[18]

Rosena Allin-Khan resigned from the Shadow Cabinet, criticising Shadow Health Secretary Wes Streeting's advocacy for outsourcing the National Health Service (NHS) to the private sector.[19] She also said that Starmer did "not see a space for a mental health portfolio in a Labour cabinet".[20][21][22]

Reaction

John Rentoul wrote in The Independent that Starmer delaying the reshuffle was to avoid a revolt from the left wing of the party.[23]

Both Momentum and Compass accused Starmer of promoting a “narrow band of Blairites”.[24] Starmer was described as demoting the remaining figures from the soft left of the party and promoting in their place his loyalists as well as Blairites.[25][26][27] Owen Jones criticised the amount of Blairites in the new shadow cabinet.[28] Andrew Fisher who was Director of Policy of the Labour Party, under leader Jeremy Corbyn described Starmer as a "weak leader" surrounded by yes men.[29]

Cabinet-level changes

Colour key
  •      Joined the Shadow Cabinet
  •      Left the Shadow Cabinet
  •      Portfolio created/renamed
Minister Position(s) before reshuffle Position(s) after reshuffle
Jim McMahon MP Shadow Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Backbench MP - Resigned for health reasons
Lisa Nandy MP Shadow Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities Shadow Cabinet Minister for International Development
Angela Rayner MP Shadow First Secretary of State
Deputy Leader of the Labour Party
Shadow Deputy Prime Minister[note 1]
Shadow Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster
Shadow Secretary of State for the Future of Work

Strategic Lead for Labours New Deal[30]

Deputy Leader of the Labour Party[note 2]
Shadow Secretary of State for the Future of Work
Shadow Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
Shabana Mahmood MP Labour Party National Campaign Coordinator Shadow Secretary of State for Justice
Shadow Lord Chancellor
Steve Reed MP Shadow Secretary of State for Justice
Shadow Lord Chancellor 		Shadow Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Pat McFadden MP Shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury Shadow Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster
Labour Party National Campaign Coordinator
Liz Kendall MP Shadow Minister for Social Care Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
Jonathan Ashworth MP Shadow Secretary of State for Work and Pensions Shadow Paymaster General
Thangam Debbonaire MP Shadow Leader of the House of Commons Shadow Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
Peter Kyle MP Shadow Secretary of State for Northern Ireland Shadow Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology
Darren Jones MP Chair of the Business and Trade Select Committee Shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury
Nick Thomas-Symonds MP Shadow President of the Board of Trade
Shadow Secretary of State for International Trade 		Shadow Minister without Portfolio in the Cabinet Office
Hilary Benn MP Backbench MP Shadow Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
Lucy Powell MP Shadow Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Shadow Leader of the House of Commons
Rosena Allin-Khan MP Shadow Cabinet Minister for Mental Health Backbench MP - Resigned over policy differences
Preet Gill MP Shadow Cabinet Minister for International Development Backbench MP - Replaced by Nandy but never re-appointed
Ellie Reeves MP Shadow Minister for Prisons and Probation Labour Party Deputy National Campaign Coordinator

Junior Changes

These roles were left vacant following the cabinet-level changes:

Notes

  1. ^ Newly named role
  2. ^ Elected office so role cannot be removed

References

  1. ^ "Labour reshuffle: Sir Keir Starmer to shake up shadow cabinet". BBC News. 3 September 2023. Retrieved 3 September 2023.
  2. ^ "Politics latest: Rayner gets new role in Labour reshuffle - as Nandy's 'brutal' demotion conversation revealed". Sky News. Retrieved 4 September 2023.
  3. ^ "Adam Boulton: MPs are heading back to Westminster - but are they all keeping an eye on a looming election?". Sky News. Retrieved 3 September 2023.
  4. ^ "Labour reshuffle: Who's in and who's out of Sir Keir Starmer's shadow cabinet?". Sky News. Retrieved 4 September 2023.
  5. ^ Gibbons, Amy (4 September 2023). "Labour reshuffle: Who's in and who's out". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 4 September 2023.
  6. ^ "Labour reshuffle: Sir Keir Starmer makes surprise shake-up to shadow cabinet". Sky News. Retrieved 3 September 2023.
  7. ^ Singh, Arj (22 August 2023). "Labour backed by 50% of voters in new opinion poll, opening up 25 point gap on Tories". inews.co.uk. Retrieved 3 September 2023.
  8. ^ "UK by-election results 2023: Votes, winners and turnout in graphs". The Independent. 21 July 2023. Retrieved 3 September 2023.
  9. ^ "Rayner 'working constructively' with Starmer amid Labour reshuffle rumours". The Independent. 16 August 2023. Retrieved 3 September 2023.
  10. ^ Scott, Geraldine (3 September 2023). "Big guns safe as Sir Keir Starmer reshuffles Labour pack". ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 3 September 2023.
  11. ^ "Keir Starmer To Shake Up His Shadow Cabinet As Labour Gets Ready For Election". HuffPost UK. 1 September 2023. Retrieved 3 September 2023.
  12. ^ a b c Crerar, Pippa; Walker, Peter (4 September 2023). "Angela Rayner named shadow levelling up secretary in Labour reshuffle". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 4 September 2023.
  13. ^ Waugh, Paul (4 September 2023). "Starmer's ruthless reshuffle confirms it - the Blairites are back". inews.co.uk. Retrieved 4 September 2023.
  14. ^ "Lisa Nandy move confirmed - and it's 'unambiguously a demotion', says Sky's Sam Coates". Sky News. Retrieved 4 September 2023.
  15. ^ "Angela Rayner handed new role as Keir Starmer reshuffles top team". BBC News. 4 September 2023. Retrieved 4 September 2023.
  16. ^ "Angela Rayner: Labour big-hitter who beat the odds". BBC News. 4 September 2023. Retrieved 4 September 2023.
  17. ^ "Hilary Benn appointed new shadow secretary of state for NI". BBC News. 4 September 2023. Retrieved 4 September 2023.
  18. ^ Walker, Peter (4 September 2023). "The winners and losers in Keir Starmer's Labour reshuffle". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 4 September 2023.
  19. ^ Fisher, Andrew (4 September 2023). "The Labour reshuffle leaves Starmer surrounded by yes-men". i (newspaper). Retrieved 4 September 2023.
  20. ^ Jarvis, Chris (4 September 2023). "'You do not see a space for a mental health portfolio in a Labour cabinet': Rosena Allin-Khan resigns from Labour frontbench". Left Foot Forward. Retrieved 4 September 2023.
  21. ^ Keane, Daniel (4 September 2023). "Shadow mental health minister resigns with swipe at Keir Starmer". Evening Standard. Retrieved 4 September 2023.
  22. ^ Barradale, Greg (4 September 2023). "Shadow mental health minister's resignation sends 'worrying message' about Keir Starmer's Labour". The Big Issue. Retrieved 4 September 2023.
  23. ^ "Why Starmer is running scared of Angela Rayner and Ed Miliband | John Rentoul". The Independent. 28 August 2023. Retrieved 3 September 2023.
  24. ^ "Keir Starmer accused of promoting 'narrow band of Blairites'". The Independent. 4 September 2023. Retrieved 4 September 2023.
  25. ^ Brown, Alexander (4 September 2023). "Labour reshuffle: Sir Keir Starmer's reshuffle purges left with right in complete control as Lisa Nandy suffers demotion". The Scotsman. Retrieved 4 September 2023.
  26. ^ Cunliffe, Rachel (4 September 2023). "Keir Starmer's reshuffle was politically ruthless". New Statesman. Retrieved 4 September 2023.
  27. ^ Chaplain, Chloe (4 September 2023). "Keir Starmer purges soft left and surrounds himself with Blairites for General Election push". inews.co.uk. Retrieved 4 September 2023.
  28. ^ Jones, Owen (4 September 2023). "After the reshuffle, Blairites dominate Starmer's shadow cabinet. That's bad news for the rest of us". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 4 September 2023.
  29. ^ Fisher, Andrew (4 September 2023). "The Labour reshuffle leaves Starmer surrounded by yes-men". inews.co.uk. Retrieved 4 September 2023.
  30. ^ "Labour Shadow Cabinet reshuffle: who is in Keir Starmer's frontbench? New jobs for Angela Rayner & Lisa Nandy". Yahoo Finance. 4 September 2023. Retrieved 4 September 2023.
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