The shadow secretary of state for transport is a political post in the United Kingdom. It has been consistently held by a member of the Official Opposition Shadow Cabinet since May 1979. The shadow secretary helps hold the transport secretary and junior ministers to account and is the lead spokesperson on transport matters for their party. Should the relevant party take office, the shadow secretary would be a likely candidate to become the transport secretary.
At various times, the post has been called Shadow Minister for Transport (including from 1979 to 1981), Shadow Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions, Shadow Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions, and Shadow Secretary of State for Environment and Transport.
Shadow secretaries of state Shadow Minister of TransportName Took office Left office Political party Shadow Cabinet George Strauss 15 July 1955 16 November 1959 Labour Attlee Gaitskell Tony Benn 16 November 1959 28 November 1960 LabourGeorge Strauss28 November 196016 October 1964Labour Brown Wilson Ernest Marples 16 October 1964 29 October 1964 Conservative Douglas-Home Enoch Powell 29 October 1964 4 August 1965 Conservative Martin Redmayne 4 August 1965 19 April 1966 Conservative Heath Peter Walker 19 April 1966 14 November 1968 Conservative Margaret Thatcher 14 November 1968 21 October 1969 Conservative Peter Walker 21 October 1969 19 June 1970 Conservative Fred Mulley 19 June 1970 4 March 1974 Labour Wilson IIUnknown 4 March 1974 15 January 1976 Conservative Heath II Thatcher Norman Fowler 15 January 1976 4 May 1979 Conservative William Rodgers 4 May 1979 14 June 1979 Labour Callaghan Albert BoothBooth was Shadow Minister of Transport until September 1981, when the Minister of Transport became Secretary of State for Transport. 14 June 1979 September 1981 LabourFootShadow Secretary of State for TransportShadow Secretary Took office Left office Political party Shadow Cabinet Albert Booth September 1981 31 October 1983 LabourFoot John Prescott 31 October 1983 26 October 1984 Labour Kinnock Gwyneth Dunwoody 26 October 1984 4 November 1985 Labour Robert Hughes 4 November 1985 23 November 1988 Labour John Prescott 23 November 1988 21 October 1993 Labour Smith Frank Dobson 21 October 1993 20 October 1994 Labour Beckett Michael Meacher 20 October 1994 19 October 1995 Labour Blair Clare Short 19 October 1995 25 July 1996 Labour Andrew Smith 25 July 1996 2 May 1997 Labour Sir George Young 2 May 1997 June 1997 Conservative MajorShadow Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the RegionsName Took office Left office Political party Shadow Cabinet Norman Fowler June 1997 1 June 1998 Conservative Hague Gillian Shepherd 1 June 1998 14 June 1999 Conservative John Redwood 14 June 1999 2 February 2000 Conservative Archie Norman 2 February 2000 18 September 2001 ConservativeShadow Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the RegionsName Took office Left office Political party Shadow Cabinet Theresa May 18 September 2001 23 July 2002 Conservative Duncan SmithShadow Secretary of State for TransportName Took office Left office Political party Shadow Cabinet Tim Collins 23 July 2002 10 November 2003 Conservative Duncan Smith Damian Green 10 November 2003 8 September 2004 ConservativeHowardShadow Secretary of State for Environment and TransportName Took office Left office Political party Shadow Cabinet Tim Yeo 8 September 2004 10 May 2005 ConservativeHowardShadow Secretary of State for TransportName Took office Left office Political party Shadow Cabinet Alan Duncan 6 May 2005 8 December 2005 ConservativeHoward Chris Grayling 8 December 2005 2 July 2007 Conservative Cameron Theresa Villiers 2 July 2007 11 May 2010 Conservative Sadiq Khan 14 May 2010 8 October 2010 Labour Harman Maria Eagle 8 October 2010 7 October 2013 Labour Miliband Mary Creagh 7 October 2013 5 November 2014 Labour Michael Dugher 5 November 2014 13 September 2015 Labour Harman II Lilian Greenwood 13 September 2015 26 June 2016 Labour Corbyn Andy McDonald 27 June 2016 6 April 2020 Labour Jim McMahon 6 April 2020 29 November 2021Labour Starmer Louise Haigh 29 November 2021 5 July 2024 Labour Helen Whately 8 July 2024 5 November 2024 Conservative Sunak Gareth Bacon 5 November 2024 22 July 2025ConservativeBadenochRichard Holden 22 July 2025IncumbentConservative
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