The secretary of state for Wales (), also referred to as the Welsh secretary, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, with responsibility for the Wales Office. The incumbent is a member of the Cabinet of the United Kingdom.
The officeholder works alongside the other Wales Office ministers. The corresponding shadow minister is the shadow secretary of state for Wales. The position is currently held by Stephen Kinnock having been appointed following Andy Burnham's appointment as prime minister in July 2026.
Creation 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 towards home rule for Wales. A post of Minister of Welsh Affairs was created in 1951 under the home secretary and was upgraded to minister of state level in 1954.
The Labour Party proposed the creation of a Welsh Office run by a Secretary of State for Wales in their manifesto for the 1959 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 was Jim Griffiths, MP for Llanelli. The position entailed responsibility for Wales, and expenditure on certain public services was delegated from Westminster. In April 1965 administration of Welsh affairs, which had previously been divided between a number of government departments, was united in a newly created Welsh Office with 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 During the 1980s and 1990s, as the number of Conservative MPs for Welsh constituencies dwindled almost to zero, the office fell into disrepute. Nicholas Edwards, MP for Pembrokeshire, 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 the Cabinet. John Redwood in particular caused embarrassment when he publicly demonstrated his inability to sing "Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau", the Welsh national anthem, at a conference.
The introduction of the National Assembly for Wales and the Welsh Government, after the devolution referendum of 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 of Secretary of State for Scotland and Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, to reflect the lesser powers of the role since devolution. Those calling for a Secretary of State for the Union include Robert Hazell, in a department into which Rodney Brazier has suggested adding a Minister of State for England with responsibility for English local government.
In June 2024, Plaid Cymru, the Welsh nationalist party, called for the position's abolition describing it as "outdated", that it "entrench[es]" a power imbalance, and its powers should be devolved. The party's representatives accused the shadow Labour holder, Jo Stevens, of having a "contemptuous attitude towards devolution" based on Stevens' comments relating to High Speed 2 and justice and policing. The Conservative incumbent David TC Davies expressed his surprise, stating that the "so-called 'party of Wales' is now wanting to silence Wales' voice [in the cabinet]". In Plaid Cymru's motion on 26 June, calling for the post's abolishment, leader of the Welsh Conservatives, Andrew RT Davies, supported the motion after being confused it was a Tory amendment being voted on.
In July 2026, the Plaid Cymru First Minister of Wales, Rhun ap Iorwerth backed calls to scrap the position.
Ministers and secretaries of state Colour key
Ministers of Welsh Affairs (1951–1964) Secretary of State Term of office Political partyCabinet Prime Minister David Maxwell Fyfe 28 October 1951 18 October 1954 Conservative Churchill III Winston Churchill Gwilym Lloyd George 18 October 1954 13 January 1957 National Liberal Eden Anthony Eden Henry Brooke 13 January 1957 9 October 1961 Conservative Macmillan IHarold Macmillan Macmillan II Charles Hill 9 October 1961 13 July 1962 National Liberal & Conservative Keith Joseph13 July 196216 October 1964Conservative Douglas-Home Alec Douglas-HomeSecretaries of State for Wales (1964–present) Secretary of StateTerm of office Political partyCabinetPrime Minister Jim Griffiths 18 October 1964 5 April 1966 Labour Wilson IHarold Wilson Cledwyn Hughes 5 April 1966 5 April 1968 Wilson II George Thomas 5 April 1968 20 June 1970 Peter Thomas 20 June 1970 5 March 1974 Conservative Heath Edward HeathJohn Morris5 March 19744 May 1979Labour Wilson III Harold Wilson Callaghan James Callaghan Nicholas Edwards 4 May 1979 13 June 1987 Conservative Thatcher IMargaret Thatcher Thatcher II Peter Walker 13 June 1987 4 May 1990 Thatcher III David Hunt 4 May 1990 27 May 1993 Major IJohn Major Major II John Redwood 27 May 1993 26 June 1995Redwood resigned to stand in the 1995 Conservative leadership election. During the election, Hunt acted as Secretary of State. David Hunt 26 June 1995 5 July 1995 William Hague 5 July 1995 2 May 1997 Ron Davies 2 May 1997 27 October 1998Resigned following what he described as a "moment of madness" on Clapham Common. Labour Blair ITony Blair Alun Michael 27 October 1998 28 July 1999Following implementation of the Government of Wales Act 1998, and the 1999 Assembly election, Michael held office as inaugural First Secretary for Wales from 12 May 1999. Paul Murphy 28 July 1999 24 October 2002 Blair IIPeter Hain24 October 200224 January 2008 Blair III BrownGordon Brown Paul Murphy 24 January 2008 5 June 2009 Peter Hain 5 June 2009 11 May 2010 Cheryl Gillan 11 May 2010 4 September 2012 Conservative Cameron–Clegg David Cameron David Jones 4 September 2012 14 July 2014 Stephen Crabb 15 July 2014 19 March 2016 Cameron IIAlun Cairns19 March 20166 November 2019 May I Theresa May May II Johnson IBoris Johnson Simon Hart 16 December 2019 6 July 2022 Johnson II Robert Buckland 7 July 2022 25 October 2022 Truss Liz Truss David TC Davies 25 October 2022 5 July 2024 Sunak Rishi Sunak Jo Stevens 5 July 2024 20 July 2026 Labour Starmer Keir Starmer Stephen Kinnock 20 July 2026 Incumbent Burnham Andy Burnham
Timeline
Note
See also First Minister for Wales Secretary of State for Northern Ireland Secretary of State for Scotland
References
External links 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