Shadow Secretary of State for Defence
The Shadow Secretary of State for Defence is a member of the UK Shadow Cabinet responsible for the scrutiny of the Secretary of State for Defence and the department, the Ministry of Defence. The post is currently held by John Healey.
| Shadow Secretary of State for Defence | |
|---|---|
| Appointer | Leader of the Opposition |
| Inaugural holder | Denis Healey |
| Formation | 1 April 1964 |
Shadow Secretaries of State
| Name | Entered office | Left office | Political party | Shadow Cabinet | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Denis Healey |  |
1 April 1964 | 16 October 1964 | Labour | Harold Wilson | |
| Peter Thorneycroft |  |
16 October 1964 | 7 July 1965 | Conservative | Alec Douglas-Home | |
| Enoch Powell |  |
7 July 1965 | 21 April 1968 | Conservative | Ted Heath | |
| Reginald Maudling | 21 April 1968 | 1969 | Conservative | |||
| Geoffrey Rippon | .jpg) |
1969 | 8 July 1970 | Conservative | ||
| George Thomson |  |
8 July 1970 | 10 April 1972 | Labour | Harold Wilson | |
| Fred Peart | |
10 April 1972 | 4 March 1974 | Labour | ||
| Ian Gilmour | |
4 March 1974 | 29 October 1974 | Conservative | Ted Heath | |
| Peter Walker | |
29 October 1974 | 18 February 1975 | Conservative | ||
| George Younger |  |
18 February 1975 | 15 January 1976 | Conservative | Margaret Thatcher | |
| Ian Gilmour | |
15 January 1976 | 4 May 1979 | Conservative | ||
| Fred Mulley |  |
4 May 1979 | 14 June 1979 | Labour | Jim Callaghan | |
| William Rodgers | |
14 June 1979 | 8 December 1980 | Labour | ||
| Brynmor John | |
8 December 1980 | 24 November 1981 | Labour | Michael Foot | |
| John Silkin | |
24 November 1981 | 26 October 1984 | Labour | ||
| Neil Kinnock | ||||||
| Denzil Davies | |
26 October 1984 | 14 June 1988 | Labour | ||
| Martin O'Neill |  |
14 June 1988 | 18 July 1992 | Labour | ||
| David Clark |  |
18 July 1992 | 2 May 1997 | Labour | John Smith | |
| Margaret Beckett | ||||||
| Tony Blair | ||||||
| John Major |  |
2 May 1997 | 11 June 1997 | Conservative | John Major | |
| George Young |  |
11 June 1997 | 1 June 1998 | Conservative | William Hague | |
| John Maples | 1 June 1998 | 15 June 1999 | Conservative | |||
| Iain Duncan Smith |  |
15 June 1999 | 18 September 2001 | Conservative | ||
| Bernard Jenkin |  |
18 September 2001 | 6 November 2003 | Conservative | Iain Duncan Smith | |
| Nicholas Soames |  |
6 November 2003 | 10 May 2005 | Conservative | Michael Howard | |
| Michael Ancram |  |
10 May 2005 | 6 December 2005 | Conservative | ||
| Liam Fox |  |
6 December 2005 | 11 May 2010 | Conservative | David Cameron | |
| Bob Ainsworth | .jpg) |
11 May 2010 | 8 October 2010 | Labour | Harriet Harman | |
| Jim Murphy |  |
8 October 2010 | 7 October 2013 | Labour | Ed Miliband | |
| Vernon Coaker |  |
7 October 2013 | 14 September 2015 | Labour | ||
| Maria Eagle |  |
14 September 2015 | 6 January 2016 | Labour | Jeremy Corbyn | |
| Emily Thornberry |  |
6 January 2016 | 27 June 2016 | Labour | ||
| Clive Lewis |  |
27 June 2016 | 6 October 2016 | Labour | ||
| Nia Griffith |  |
6 October 2016 | 6 April 2020 | Labour | ||
| John Healey |  |
6 April 2020 | Incumbent | Labour | Keir Starmer | |