 | 'This is an extraordinary step backwards into the worst elements of the Blair era, to reinstate possibly the most divisive figure in Labour's recent history.' Labour MP John McDonnell on the appointment of the twice-disgraced Peter Mandelson as a cabinet minister for the third time, 3 rd October 2007. |  |
Gordon Brown was appointed Prime Minister on the 27 th June 2007 and started to appoint his new ministerial team on the 28 th June. A reshuffle was held on the 25 th January 2008 following the resignation of the Rt Hon Peter Hain, Secretary of State for Work & Pensions and Wales following a donations scandal. In the reshuffle, Paul Murphy was appointed as Secretary of State for Wales, leaving Scotland as the only country with a part time Secretary of State.
On the 3 rd October a futher resuffle was carried out with Des Browne, Ruth Kelly and Baroness Ashton of Upholland leaving the cabinet.
| Position | Name | Total Salary |
|---|---|---|
| Prime Minister, First Lord of the Treasury & Minister for the Civil Service | Rt Hon Dr Gordon Brown, MP | £189,994 |
| Chancellor of the Exchequer | Rt Hon Alistair Darling, MP | £138,724 |
| Secretary of State for Foreign & Commonwealth Affairs | Rt Hon David Miliband, MP | £138,724 |
| Secretary of State for Justice & Lord Chancellor (Constitutional Affairs until June 2007) | Rt Hon Jack Straw, MP | £138,724 |
| Secretary of State for Home Affairs | Rt Hon Jacqui Smith, MP | £138,724 |
| Secretary of State for Health | Rt Alan Johnson, MP | £138,724 |
| Secretary of State for Defence | Rt Hon John Hutton, MP | £138,724 |
| Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise & Regulatory Reform (previously Trade & Industry) | Rt Hon Peter Mandelson, Baron Mandelson of Foy & Hartlepool | £104,386 Plus taxpayer-funded EU pay worth £234,000 over three years |
| Secretary of State for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs | Rt Hon Hilary Benn, MP | £138,724 |
| Secretary of State for International Development | Rt Hon Douglas Alexander, MP | £138,724 |
| Secretary of State of Communities & Local Government | Rt Hon Hazel Blears, MP | £138,724 |
| Secretary of State for Transport | Rt Hon Geoff Hoony, MP | £138,724 |
| Secretary of State for Children, Schools & Families | Rt Hon Ed Balls, MP | £138,724 |
| Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities & Skills | Rt Hon John Denham, MP | £138,724 |
| Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change | Rt Hon Ed Miliband, MP | £138,724 |
| Secretary of State for Work & Pensions | Rt Hon James Purnell, MP | £138,724 |
| Secretary of State for Culture, Media & Sport | Rt Hon Andy Burnham, MP | £138,724 |
| Secretary of State for Scotland | Rt Hon Jim Murphy, MP | £138,724 |
| Secretary of State for Northern Ireland | Rt Hon Shaun Woodward, MP | £61,820a |
| Secretary of State for Wales | Rt Hon Paul Murphy, MP | £138,724 |
| Chief Secretary to the Treasury | Rt Hon Yvette Cooper, MP | £138,724 |
| Leader of the House of Commons, Lord Privy Seal and Minister for Women & Equalities | Rt Hon Harriet Harman, QC, MP | £138,724 |
| Leader of the House of Lords & Lord President of the Council | Rt Hon Baroness Royall of Blaisdon | £104,386 |
The following people are not Cabinet Ministers but also attend cabinet meetings.
| Position | Name | Total Salary |
|---|---|---|
| Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury (Chief Whip) | Rt Hon Nick Brown, MP | £138,724 |
| Minister for the Cabinet Office & & Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster | Rt Hon Liam Byrne, MP | £138,724 |
| Minister for Housing, Department for Communities & Local Government | Rt Hon Margaret Beckett MP | £101,713 |
| Minister for Employment, Department for Department for Work & Pensions | Tony McNulty MP | £101,713 |
| Minister of State, Foreign & Commonwealth Office | Sir Mark Malloch Brown KCMG, Lord Malloch Brown | £104,386 |
| Minister of State, Department for Innovation, Universities & Skills | Lord Drayson | unpaid |
| Parliamentary Private Secretaries to the Prime Minister | Angela E. Smith MP Jon Trickett MP |
£61,820 |
The following people are not Cabinet Ministers but also attend cabinet meetings.
| Minister for the Olympics & London and Paymaster General | Rt Hon Tessa Jowell, MP | £101,713 |
| Attorney General | Rt Hon Baroness Scotland of Asthal QC | £109,201 |
| Minister of State for Europe, Foreign & Commonwealth Office | Rt Hon Caroline Flint MP | £101,713 |
| Minister for Children, Schools & Families and Minister for the North West | Rt Hon Beverley Hughes, MP1 | £101,713 |
On the 3 rd of October 2008, the Queen was pleased to signify Her intention of conferring a peerage of the United Kingdom for Life on the Rt Hon Peter Mandelson.
Those highlighted in blue represent Scottish constituencies, those highlighted in red are Scots born. The ministerial entitlement includes the MP's parliamentary salary which is £61,820 as of 1 st November 2007.
The Secretary of State for Justice includes previous Home Office responsibilities with the office of Constitutional Affairs which itself replaced the posts of Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain, and verw briefly, Secretary of State for Scotland, and Secretary of State for Wales.
The post of Secretary of State for Education has been divided into Children, Schools & Families and Innovation, Universities & Skills.
The office of Deputy Prime Minister has been abolished.
In Gordon Brown's cabinet, four of the 23 members (17 %) are Scots MPs. In 2001, five of the 20 members the cabinet (25 %) represented Scottish constituencies compared to 55 MPs out of 416 (13 %) in the parliamentary party. This over-representation was partly explained by the fact that Ministers are generally recruited from senior MPs. In 1983, Scottish MPs accounted for 50/229 (21.8 %) of the parliamentary party.
By 2003, only three of the 21 members of the cabinet (14 %) represented Scottish constituencies. However, Dr John Reid, an MP sitting for a Scottish constituency, had responsability for Health in England and Wales. Responsability for Health in Scotland has been devolved to the Scottish Parliament.
After the 2005 election, four of the 22 ministers in the cabinet (18 %) represented Scottish constituencies with a futher Scottish MP, Douglas Alexander attending cabinet meetings. He was later promoted to become a full cabinet member.
In the previous Conservative government, 3 of the 11 (27 %) of Scottish MPs were cabinet ministers (Michael Forsyth, Scottish Secretary; Malcolm Rifkind, Defence and Ian Lang, President of the Board of Trade). This compares to the 5 out of 55 (9 %) of Scottish Labour MPs who were cabinet ministers in 2001.
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