Home Secretary

United Kingdom
Secretary of State
for the Home Department
United Kingdom; Secretary of State; for the Home Department
	Royal Arms as used by the Home Office
	Incumbent; Shabana Mahmood; since 5 September 2025
	Home Office
Style	Home Secretary; (informal); The Right Honourable; (within the UK and Commonwealth)
Type	Minister of the Crown
Status	Secretary of State; Great Office of State
Member of	Cabinet; Privy Council; National Security 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	27 March 1782
First holder	Earl of Shelburne
Deputy	Minister of State for Security
Salary	£159,038 per annum (2022); (including £86,584 MP salary)
Website	Home Secretary

The home secretary in the United Kingdom is a senior minister of the British Government and the head of the Home Office. Since 5 September 2025, the office has been held by Shabana Mahmood. She is responsible for immigration, the police and other matters relating to the safety of the United Kingdom.^[3]

List of home secretaries


		Term of office		Party	Ministry	Monarch (Reign)
	William Petty 2nd Earl of Shelburne^[5]	27 March 1782	10 July 1782	Whig	Rockingham II	George III (1760–1820) ^{[note 1]}
	Thomas Townsend^[5] MP for Whitchurch	10 July 1782	2 April 1783	Whig	Shelburne (Whig–Tory)
	Frederick North Lord North^[5] MP for Banbury	2 April 1783	19 December 1783	Tory	Fox–North
	George Nugent-Temple-Grenville 3rd Earl Temple^[6]	19 December 1783	23 December 1783	Tory	Pitt I
	Thomas Townsend 1st Baron Sydney^[5]	23 December 1783	5 June 1789	Whig
	William Grenville 1st Baron Grenville^[5] MP for Buckinghamshire^{[note 2]} (1759–1834)	5 June 1789	8 June 1791	Tory
	Henry Dundas^[5] MP for Edinburgh	8 June 1791	11 July 1794	Tory
	William Cavendish-Bentinck 3rd Duke of Portland^[5]	11 July 1794	30 July 1801	Tory
	William Cavendish-Bentinck 3rd Duke of Portland^[5]	11 July 1794	30 July 1801	Tory	Addington
	Thomas Pelham 4th Baron Pelham of Stanmer^[5]	30 July 1801	17 August 1803	Whig
	Charles Philip Yorke^[5] MP for Cambridgeshire	17 August 1803	12 May 1804	Tory
	Robert Jenkinson 2nd Baron Hawkesbury^[5]	12 May 1804	5 February 1806	Tory	Pitt II
	George Spencer 2nd Earl Spencer^[5]	5 February 1806	25 March 1807	Whig	All the Talents (Whig–Tory)
	Robert Jenkinson 2nd Earl of Liverpool^[5]	25 March 1807	1 November 1809	Tory	Portland II
	Richard Ryder^[5] MP for Tiverton	1 November 1809	8 June 1812	Tory	Perceval
	Henry Addington 1st Viscount Sidmouth^[5]	11 June 1812	17 January 1822	Tory	Liverpool
	Henry Addington 1st Viscount Sidmouth^[5]	11 June 1812	17 January 1822	Tory		George IV (1820–1830)
	Robert Peel^[5] MP for Oxford University	17 January 1822	10 April 1827	Tory
	William Sturges Bourne^[5] MP for Ashburton	30 April 1827	16 July 1827	Tory	Canning (Canningite–Whig)
File:Lord Henry Petty.jpg	Henry Petty-Fitzmaurice 3rd Marquess of Lansdowne^[5]	16 July 1827	22 January 1828	Whig	Canning (Canningite–Whig)
File:Lord Henry Petty.jpg	Henry Petty-Fitzmaurice 3rd Marquess of Lansdowne^[5]	16 July 1827	22 January 1828	Whig	Goderich
	Robert Peel^[5] MP for 3 constituencies respectively (1788–1850)	26 January 1828	22 November 1830	Tory	Wellington–Peel
		26 January 1828	22 November 1830	Tory	Wellington–Peel	William IV (1830–1837)
	William Lamb 2nd Viscount Melbourne^[5]	22 November 1830	16 July 1834	Whig	Grey
	John Ponsonby 1st Baron Duncannon^[5]	19 July 1834	15 November 1834	Whig	Melbourne I
	Arthur Wellesley 1st Duke of Wellington^[5]	15 November 1834	15 December 1834	Tory	Wellington Caretaker
	Henry Goulburn^[5] MP for Cambridge University	15 December 1834	18 April 1835	Conservative	Peel I
	Lord John Russell^[6] MP for Stroud	18 April 1835	30 August 1839	Whig	Melbourne II
	Lord John Russell^[6] MP for Stroud	18 April 1835	30 August 1839	Whig		Victoria (1837–1901)
	Constantine Phipps 1st Marquess of Normanby^[6]	30 August 1839	30 August 1841	Whig
	Sir James Graham^[6] 2nd Baronet MP for Dorchester	6 September 1841	30 June 1846	Conservative	Peel II
	Sir George Grey^[6] 2nd Baronet MP for Devonport → North Northumberland^{[note 3]} (1799–1882)	8 July 1846	23 February 1852	Whig	Russell I
	Spencer Horatio Walpole^[6] MP for Midhurst	27 February 1852	19 December 1852	Conservative	Who? Who?
	Henry John Temple 3rd Viscount Palmerston^[6] MP for Tiverton	28 December 1852	6 February 1855	Whig	Aberdeen (Peelite–Whig)
	Sir George Grey^[6] 2nd Baronet MP for Morpeth	8 February 1855	26 February 1858	Whig	Palmerston I
	Spencer Horatio Walpole^[6] MP for Cambridge University	26 February 1858	3 March 1859	Conservative	Derby–Disraeli II
	Thomas Henry Sutton Sotheron-Estcourt^[6] MP for North Wiltshire	3 March 1859	18 June 1859	Conservative	Derby–Disraeli II
	George Cornewall Lewis^[6] MP for Radnor	18 June 1859	25 July 1861	Liberal	Palmerston II
	Sir George Grey^[6] 2nd Baronet MP for Morpeth	25 July 1861	28 June 1866	Liberal	Palmerston II
	Sir George Grey^[6] 2nd Baronet MP for Morpeth	25 July 1861	28 June 1866	Liberal	Russell II
	Spencer Horatio Walpole^[6] MP for Cambridge University	6 July 1866	17 May 1867	Conservative	Derby–Disraeli III
	Gathorne Gathorne-Hardy^[6] MP for Oxford University	17 May 1867	3 December 1868	Conservative	Derby–Disraeli III
	Henry Bruce^[6] MP for Merthyr Tydfil → Renfrewshire^{[note 4]} (1815–1895)	9 December 1868	9 August 1873	Liberal	Gladstone I
	Robert Lowe^[6] MP for London University	9 August 1873	20 February 1874	Liberal	Gladstone I
	R. A. Cross^[6] MP for South West Lancashire	21 February 1874	23 April 1880	Conservative	Disraeli II
	William Harcourt^[6] MP for Derby	28 April 1880	23 June 1885	Liberal	Gladstone II
	R. A. Cross^[6] MP for Newton	24 June 1885	1 February 1886	Conservative	Salisbury I
	Hugh Childers^[6] MP for Edinburgh South	6 February 1886	25 July 1886	Liberal	Gladstone III
	Henry Matthews^[6] MP for Birmingham East	3 August 1886	15 August 1892	Conservative	Salisbury II
	H. H. Asquith^[6] MP for East Fife	18 August 1892	25 June 1895	Liberal	Gladstone IV
	H. H. Asquith^[6] MP for East Fife	18 August 1892	25 June 1895	Liberal	Rosebery
	Matthew White Ridley^[6] MP for Blackpool	29 June 1895	12 November 1900	Conservative	Salisbury (III & IV) (Con.–Lib.U.)
	Charles Ritchie^[6] MP for Croydon	12 November 1900	11 August 1902	Conservative
						Edward VII (1901–1910)
					Balfour
	Aretas Akers-Douglas^[6] MP for St Augustine's	11 August 1902	5 December 1905	Conservative	Balfour
	Herbert Gladstone^[6] MP for Leeds West	11 December 1905	19 February 1910	Liberal	Campbell-Bannerman
	Herbert Gladstone^[6] MP for Leeds West	11 December 1905	19 February 1910	Liberal	Asquith (I–III)
	Winston Churchill^[6] MP for Dundee	19 February 1910	24 October 1911	Liberal
	Winston Churchill^[6] MP for Dundee	19 February 1910	24 October 1911	Liberal		George V (1910–1936)
	Reginald McKenna^[6] MP for North Monmouthshire	24 October 1911	27 May 1915	Liberal
	John Simon^[6] MP for Walthamstow	27 May 1915	12 January 1916	Liberal	Asquith Coalition (Lib.–Con.–et al.)
File:Herbert Samuel.jpg	Herbert Samuel^[6] MP for Cleveland	12 January 1916	7 December 1916	Liberal	Asquith Coalition (Lib.–Con.–et al.)
	George Cave 1st Viscount Cave^[6] MP for Kingston^{[note 5]} (1856–1928)	11 December 1916	14 January 1919	Conservative	Lloyd George (I & II)
	Edward Shortt^[6] MP for Newcastle upon Tyne West	14 January 1919	23 October 1922	National Liberal	Lloyd George (I & II)
	William Bridgeman^[6] MP for Oswestry	25 October 1922	22 January 1924	Conservative	Law
	William Bridgeman^[6] MP for Oswestry	25 October 1922	22 January 1924	Conservative	Baldwin I
	Arthur Henderson^[6] MP for Burnley^{[note 6]} (1863–1935)	23 January 1924	4 November 1924	Labour	MacDonald I
	William Joynson-Hicks^[6] MP for Twickenham	7 November 1924	5 June 1929	Conservative	Baldwin II
	John Robert Clynes^[6] MP for Manchester Platting	8 June 1929	26 August 1931	Labour	MacDonald II
File:Herbert Samuel.jpg	Herbert Samuel^[6] MP for Darwen	26 August 1931	1 October 1932	Liberal	National I (N.Lab.–Con.–et al.)
File:Herbert Samuel.jpg	Herbert Samuel^[6] MP for Darwen	26 August 1931	1 October 1932	Liberal	National II
	Sir John Gilmour^[6] 2nd Baronet MP for Glasgow Pollok	1 October 1932	7 June 1935	Template:Party shading/Unionist (Scotland) \| Unionist	National II
	John Simon^[6] MP for Spen Valley	7 June 1935	28 May 1937	rowspan=3 Template:Party shading/Liberal National \| Liberal National	National III (Con.–N.Lab.–et al.)
				Edward VIII (1936)
				George VI (1936–1952)
	Samuel Hoare^[6] MP for Chelsea	28 May 1937	3 September 1939		Conservative	National IV
	John Anderson^[6] MP for Combined Scottish Universities	4 September 1939	4 October 1940		Independent (National)	Chamberlain War
	John Anderson^[6] MP for Combined Scottish Universities	4 September 1939	4 October 1940		Independent (National)	Churchill War (All parties)
	Herbert Morrison^[6] MP for Hackney South	4 October 1940	23 May 1945		Labour	Churchill War (All parties)
	Donald Somervell^[6] MP for Crewe	25 May 1945	26 July 1945		Conservative	Churchill Caretaker (Con.–Lib.N.)
	James Chuter Ede^[6] MP for South Shields	3 August 1945	26 October 1951		Labour	Attlee (I & II)
	David Maxwell Fyfe^[6] MP for Liverpool West Derby	27 October 1951	19 October 1954		Conservative	Churchill III
	David Maxwell Fyfe^[6] MP for Liverpool West Derby	27 October 1951	19 October 1954	Elizabeth II (1952–2022)	Conservative
File:Gwilym Lloyd George 1922.jpg	Gwilym Lloyd George^[6] MP for Newcastle upon Tyne North	19 October 1954	14 January 1957		Template:Party shading/Liberal National rowspan=2 \| National Liberal & Conservative
File:Gwilym Lloyd George 1922.jpg		19 October 1954	14 January 1957		Eden
	Rab Butler^[6] MP for Saffron Walden	14 January 1957	13 July 1962		Conservative	Macmillan (I & II)
	Henry Brooke^[6] MP for Hampstead	14 July 1962	16 October 1964		Conservative	Macmillan (I & II)
	Henry Brooke^[6] MP for Hampstead	14 July 1962	16 October 1964		Conservative	Douglas-Home
	Frank Soskice^[6] MP for Newport	18 October 1964	23 December 1965		Labour	Wilson (I & II)
	Roy Jenkins^[6] MP for Birmingham Stechford	23 December 1965	30 November 1967		Labour
	James Callaghan^[6] MP for Cardiff South East	30 November 1967	19 June 1970		Labour
	Reginald Maudling^[6] MP for Barnet	20 June 1970	18 July 1972		Conservative	Heath
	Robert Carr^[6] MP for Carshalton	18 July 1972	4 March 1974		Conservative	Heath
	Roy Jenkins^[6] MP for Birmingham Stechford	5 March 1974	10 September 1976		Labour	Wilson (III & IV)
	Roy Jenkins^[6] MP for Birmingham Stechford	5 March 1974	10 September 1976		Labour	Callaghan
	Merlyn Rees^[6] MP for Leeds South	10 September 1976	4 May 1979		Labour	Callaghan
	William Whitelaw^[6] MP for Penrith and The Border	4 May 1979	11 June 1983		Conservative	Thatcher I
	Leon Brittan^[6] MP for Richmond (Yorks)	11 June 1983	2 September 1985		Conservative	Thatcher II
	Douglas Hurd^[6] MP for Witney	2 September 1985	26 October 1989		Conservative	Thatcher II
	Douglas Hurd^[6] MP for Witney	2 September 1985	26 October 1989		Conservative	Thatcher III
	David Waddington^[6] MP for Ribble Valley	26 October 1989	28 November 1990		Conservative	Thatcher III
	Kenneth Baker^[6] MP for Mole Valley	28 November 1990	10 April 1992		Conservative	Major I
	Kenneth Clarke^[6] MP for Rushcliffe	10 April 1992	27 May 1993		Conservative	Major II
	Michael Howard^[6] MP for Folkestone and Hythe	27 May 1993	2 May 1997		Conservative	Major II
	Jack Straw^[6] MP for Blackburn	2 May 1997	8 June 2001		Labour	Blair I
	David Blunkett^[6] MP for Sheffield Brightside	8 June 2001	15 December 2004		Labour	Blair II
	Charles Clarke^[6] MP for Norwich South	15 December 2004	5 May 2006		Labour	Blair II
	Charles Clarke^[6] MP for Norwich South	15 December 2004	5 May 2006		Labour	Blair III
	John Reid^[7] MP for Airdrie and Shotts	5 May 2006	28 June 2007		Labour	Blair III
	Jacqui Smith^[8] MP for Redditch	28 June 2007	5 June 2009		Labour	Brown
	Alan Johnson^[9] MP for Hull West and Hessle	5 June 2009	11 May 2010		Labour	Brown
	Theresa May^[10] MP for Maidenhead Tenure	12 May 2010	13 July 2016		Conservative	Cameron–Clegg (Con.–L.D.)
	Theresa May^[10] MP for Maidenhead Tenure	12 May 2010	13 July 2016		Conservative	Cameron II
	Amber Rudd^[11] MP for Hastings and Rye	13 July 2016	29 April 2018		Conservative	May I
	Amber Rudd^[11] MP for Hastings and Rye	13 July 2016	29 April 2018		Conservative	May II
	Sajid Javid^[12] MP for Bromsgrove	30 April 2018	24 July 2019		Conservative	May II
	Priti Patel^[13] MP for Witham	24 July 2019	6 September 2022		Conservative	Johnson I
	Priti Patel^[13] MP for Witham	24 July 2019	6 September 2022		Conservative	Johnson II
	Suella Braverman^[14] MP for Fareham	6 September 2022	19 October 2022		Conservative	Truss
	Suella Braverman^[14] MP for Fareham	6 September 2022	19 October 2022	Charles III (2022–present)	Conservative
	Grant Shapps^[15] MP for Welwyn Hatfield	19 October 2022	25 October 2022		Conservative
	Suella Braverman^[16] MP for Fareham	25 October 2022	13 November 2023		Conservative	Sunak
	James Cleverly^[16] MP for Braintree	13 November 2023	5 July 2024		Conservative	Sunak
	Yvette Cooper^[17] MP for Pontefract, Castleford and Knottingley	5 July 2024	5 September 2025		Labour	Starmer
	Shabana Mahmood^[18] MP for Birmingham Ladywood	5 September 2025	Incumbent^{[note 7]}		Labour	Starmer
	Shabana Mahmood^[18] MP for Birmingham Ladywood	5 September 2025	Incumbent^{[note 7]}		Labour	Burnham

Notes

↑ The Prince of Wales served as prince regent from 5 February 1811.
↑ Elevated to the Peerage of Great Britain in 1790.
↑ Elected to a new constituency in the 1847 general election.
↑ Lost seat in the 1868 general election and elected to a new constituency in the Renfrewshire by-election.
↑ Ennobled on the day of the 1918 election, which he did not contest.
↑ Elected on 28 February 1924 in the Burnley by-election.
↑ Mahmood remained in office upon the formation of the Burnham ministry, being reappointed by Prime Minister Andy Burnham on 20 July 2026.^[19]

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.
↑ "David Lammy New UK Foreign Secretary, Yvette Cooper Interior Minister". Barron's. Retrieved 5 July 2024.
↑ Cite error: The named reference gov.uk was used but no text was provided for refs named (see the help page).
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 Gibson 2008.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 "Home Secretary". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). Retrieved 12 September 2017.
↑ "Clarke is fired in Cabinet purge". BBC News. 5 May 2006. Retrieved 13 September 2017.
↑ "First female boss for Home Office". BBC News. 28 June 2007. Retrieved 13 September 2017.
↑ "Hutton quits in cabinet reshuffle". BBC News. 5 June 2009. Retrieved 13 September 2017.
↑ "Cameron coalition: Theresa May made home secretary". BBC News. 12 May 2010. Retrieved 13 September 2017.
↑ "Theresa May shakes up government with new-look cabinet". BBC News. 14 July 2016. Retrieved 13 September 2017.
↑ "Sajid Javid announced as new Home Secretary after Amber Rudd's resignation". Sky News. Retrieved 30 April 2018.
↑ "Priti Patel appointed UK interior minister: statement". Reuters. 24 July 2019. Retrieved 30 June 2021.
↑ "Suella Braverman MP on Twitter: My letter to the Prime Minister". Twitter. Retrieved 2022-10-19.
↑ "Grants Shapps replaces Suella Braverman as home secretary". BBC News. 2022-10-19. Retrieved 2022-10-19.
1 2 "Braverman returns to home secretary role". BBC News. 25 October 2022. Retrieved 25 October 2022.
↑ "Rachel Reeves becomes UK's first female chancellor with Angela Rayner deputy PM as Keir Starmer names cabinet – election live". The Guardian. 5 July 2024. Retrieved 5 July 2024.
↑ Cite error: The named reference gov-mahmood was used but no text was provided for refs named (see the help page).
↑ Cite error: The named reference burnham-cabinet was used but no text was provided for refs named (see the help page).

This short article about the United Kingdom can be made longer. You can help Wikipedia by adding to it.

[6] The Prince of Wales served as prince regent from 5 February 1811.

[8] Elevated to the Peerage of Great Britain in 1790.

[9] Elected to a new constituency in the 1847 general election.

[10] Lost seat in the 1868 general election and elected to a new constituency in the Renfrewshire by-election.

[11] Ennobled on the day of the 1918 election, which he did not contest.

[12] Elected on 28 February 1924 in the Burnley by-election.

[26] Mahmood remained in office upon the formation of the Burnham ministry, being reappointed by Prime Minister Andy Burnham on 20 July 2026.^[19]

[1] "Salaries of Members of His Majesty's Government – Financial Year 2022–23" (PDF). 15 December 2022.

[2] "Pay and expenses for MPs". parliament.uk. Retrieved 15 December 2022.

[3] "David Lammy New UK Foreign Secretary, Yvette Cooper Interior Minister". Barron's. Retrieved 5 July 2024.

[gov.uk-4] Cite error: The named reference gov.uk was used but no text was provided for refs named (see the help page).

[FOOTNOTEGibson2008-5] 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 Gibson 2008.

[Hansard-7] 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 "Home Secretary". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). Retrieved 12 September 2017.

[13] "Clarke is fired in Cabinet purge". BBC News. 5 May 2006. Retrieved 13 September 2017.

[14] "First female boss for Home Office". BBC News. 28 June 2007. Retrieved 13 September 2017.

[15] "Hutton quits in cabinet reshuffle". BBC News. 5 June 2009. Retrieved 13 September 2017.

[16] "Cameron coalition: Theresa May made home secretary". BBC News. 12 May 2010. Retrieved 13 September 2017.

[17] "Theresa May shakes up government with new-look cabinet". BBC News. 14 July 2016. Retrieved 13 September 2017.

[18] "Sajid Javid announced as new Home Secretary after Amber Rudd's resignation". Sky News. Retrieved 30 April 2018.

[auto-19] "Priti Patel appointed UK interior minister: statement". Reuters. 24 July 2019. Retrieved 30 June 2021.

[20] "Suella Braverman MP on Twitter: My letter to the Prime Minister". Twitter. Retrieved 2022-10-19.

[21] "Grants Shapps replaces Suella Braverman as home secretary". BBC News. 2022-10-19. Retrieved 2022-10-19.

[auto1-22] 1 2 "Braverman returns to home secretary role". BBC News. 25 October 2022. Retrieved 25 October 2022.

[23] "Rachel Reeves becomes UK's first female chancellor with Angela Rayner deputy PM as Keir Starmer names cabinet – election live". The Guardian. 5 July 2024. Retrieved 5 July 2024.

[gov-mahmood-24] Cite error: The named reference gov-mahmood was used but no text was provided for refs named (see the help page).

[burnham-cabinet-25] Cite error: The named reference burnham-cabinet was used but no text was provided for refs named (see the help page).

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[note 1]

[6]

[note 2]

[note 3]

[note 4]

[note 5]

[note 6]

[7]

[8]

[9]

[10]

[11]

[12]

[13]

[14]

[15]

[16]

[17]

[18]

[note 7]

[19]