Secretary of State for Defence | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Secretary of State for Defence | Vacant |
| Shadow Secretary of State for Defence | Vacant |
| Department | Ministry of Defence |
| Reports to | The Prime Minister |
| Member of | Cabinet |
| Appointed by | The Sovereign, on the advice of the Prime Minister |
| Seat | Main Building, Whitehall, London, SW1A 2HB |
| Shadowed by | Shadow Secretary of State for Defence |
The Secretary of State for Defence is the minister in charge of the Ministry of Defence, responsible for the armed forces and the defence of the United Kingdom. The office holder is a member of the Cabinet and is appointed by The Sovereign on the advice of the Prime Minister.
History
The Defence Secretary sets defence policy, decides how the armed forces are equipped and paid for, and advises the Prime Minister on military operations. The post was created in 1964, when the separate ministries for the Royal Navy, the Army and the Royal Air Force were joined into one Ministry of Defence.
Role
The Secretary of State for Defence leads the Ministry of Defence. They decide the department's policy within the government's programme, defend its budget, answer questions about it in the House of Commons, and bring forward the bills it needs through Parliament. Like every Cabinet minister, they are bound by collective responsibility: once the Cabinet has decided something, all its members must support it in public or resign.
On the UKOGB website the Secretary of State for Defence is the head of the department. They can edit its page, choose who works there and post its announcements, and they get the Cabinet and HM Government roles in the Discord server.
Opposition counterpart
The Shadow Cabinet includes a Shadow Secretary of State for Defence, chosen by the Leader of the Opposition. The shadow minister questions the Secretary of State for Defence in the Commons, responds to the department's announcements and sets out what the Opposition would do instead.
See also
This page was last edited on 3 November 2026.