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.
| Shadow Secretary of State for Transport | |
|---|---|
Incumbent since 22 July 2025Richard Holden | |
| Shadow Cabinet of the United Kingdom | |
| Reports to | Leader of the Opposition |
| Appointer | Leader of the Opposition |
| Website | The Shadow Cabinet |
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 Transport | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | 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 | Labour | |||
| George Strauss | 28 November 1960 | 16 October 1964 | Labour | |||
| 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 II | ||
| Unknown | 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 Booth | 14 June 1979 | September 1981 | Labour | |||
| Foot | ||||||
Shadow Secretary of State for Transport | ||||||
| Shadow Secretary | Took office | Left office | Political party | Shadow Cabinet | ||
| Albert Booth | September 1981 | 31 October 1983 | Labour | Foot | ||
| 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 | Major | ||
Shadow Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions | ||||||
| Name | 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 | Conservative | |||
Shadow Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions | ||||||
| Name | Took office | Left office | Political party | Shadow Cabinet | ||
| Theresa May | 18 September 2001 | 23 July 2002 | Conservative | Duncan Smith | ||
Shadow Secretary of State for Transport | ||||||
| Name | 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 | Conservative | Howard | ||
Shadow Secretary of State for Environment and Transport | ||||||
| Name | Took office | Left office | Political party | Shadow Cabinet | ||
| Tim Yeo | 8 September 2004 | 10 May 2005 | Conservative | Howard | ||
Shadow Secretary of State for Transport | ||||||
| Name | Took office | Left office | Political party | Shadow Cabinet | ||
| Alan Duncan | 6 May 2005 | 8 December 2005 | Conservative | Howard | ||
| 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 2021 | Labour | 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 2025 | Conservative | Badenoch | ||
| Richard Holden | 22 July 2025 | Incumbent | Conservative | |||
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