# Shadow Secretary of State for Northern Ireland

The shadow secretary of state for Northern Ireland is a member of the British Shadow Cabinet responsible for the scrutiny of the secretary of state for Northern Ireland and their department, the Northern Ireland Office. The post is held by Alex Burghart.
Until recently there had been a 'bi-partisan' attitude to Northern Ireland affairs in the House of Commons but the role is influenced by the relationship between the main Official Opposition and parties in the country. The Conservative Party, for example, generally supports the unionist cause and in 2008 re-formalised a (since ended) link with the Ulster Unionist Party and relied on the support of the Democratic Unionist Party until the 2019 United Kingdom General Election in the House of Commons, while Labour has traditionally supported Irish nationalism and is loosely allied to the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP). The Liberal Democrats are linked with the cross-community Alliance Party.

## Shadow secretaries of state

| Name | Entered office | Left office | Length of Term | Political party | Shadow Cabinet |
| Merlyn Rees | 24 March 1972 | 4 March 1974 | 1 year, 345 days | Labour | Harold Wilson |
| Francis Pym | 4 March 1974 | 29 October 1974 | 239 days | Conservative | Edward Heath |
| Ian Gilmour | 29 October 1974 | 18 February 1975 | 112 days | Conservative | Edward Heath |
| Airey Neave | 18 February 1975 | 30 March 1979 | 4 years, 40 days | Conservative | Edward Heath |
| Airey Neave | 18 February 1975 | 30 March 1979 | 4 years, 40 days | Conservative | Edward Heath |
| Airey Neave | 18 February 1975 | 30 March 1979 | 4 years, 40 days | Conservative | Margaret Thatcher |
| Roy Mason | 4 May 1979 | 14 July 1979 | 71 days | Labour | James Callaghan |
| Brynmor John | 14 July 1979 | 8 December 1980 | 1 year, 147 days | Labour | James Callaghan |
| Don Concannon | 8 December 1980 | 31 October 1983 | 2 years, 327 days | Labour | Michael Foot |
| Peter Archer | 31 October 1983 | 13 July 1987 | 3 years, 255 days | Labour | Neil Kinnock |
| Kevin McNamara | 13 July 1987 | 20 October 1994 | 7 years, 99 days | Labour | Neil Kinnock |
| Kevin McNamara | 13 July 1987 | 20 October 1994 | 7 years, 99 days | Labour | John Smith |
| Kevin McNamara | 13 July 1987 | 20 October 1994 | 7 years, 99 days | Labour | Margaret Beckett |
| Mo Mowlam | 20 October 1994 | 2 May 1997 | 2 years, 194 days | Labour | Tony Blair |
| Andrew Mackay | 23 June 1997 | 14 September 2001 | 4 years, 83 days | Conservative | William Hague |
| Quentin Davies | 14 September 2001 | 11 November 2003 | 2 years, 58 days | Conservative | Iain Duncan Smith |
| David Lidington | 11 November 2003 | 2 July 2007 | 3 years, 233 days | Conservative | Michael Howard |
| David Lidington | 11 November 2003 | 2 July 2007 | 3 years, 233 days | Conservative | David Cameron |
| Owen Paterson | 2 July 2007 | 11 May 2010 | 2 years, 313 days | Conservative | David Cameron |
| Shaun Woodward | 11 May 2010 | 7 October 2011 | 1 year, 149 days | Labour | Harriet Harman |
| Shaun Woodward | 11 May 2010 | 7 October 2011 | 1 year, 149 days | Labour | Ed Miliband |
| Vernon Coaker | 7 October 2011 | 7 October 2013 | 2 years, 0 days | Labour | Ed Miliband |
| Ivan Lewis | 7 October 2013 | 13 September 2015 | 1 year, 341 days | Labour | Ed Miliband |
| Ivan Lewis | 7 October 2013 | 13 September 2015 | 1 year, 341 days | Labour | Ed Miliband |
| Ivan Lewis | 7 October 2013 | 13 September 2015 | 1 year, 341 days | Labour | Harriet Harman |
| Vernon Coaker | 13 September 2015 | 26 June 2016 | 287 days | Labour | Jeremy Corbyn |
| Dave Anderson | 26 June 2016 | 14 June 2017 | 353 days | Labour | Jeremy Corbyn |
| Owen Smith | 14 June 2017 | 23 March 2018 | 282 days | Labour | Jeremy Corbyn |
| Tony Lloyd | 23 March 2018 | 6 April 2020 | 2 years, 14 days | Labour | Jeremy Corbyn |
| Louise Haigh | 6 April 2020 | 29 November 2021 | 1 year, 237 days | Labour | Sir Keir Starmer |
| Peter Kyle | 29 November 2021 | 4 September 2023 | 1 year, 279 days | Labour | Sir Keir Starmer |
| Hilary Benn | 4 September 2023 | 5 July 2024 | 305 days | Labour | Sir Keir Starmer |
| Alex Burghart | 8 July 2024 | Incumbent | 216 days | Conservative | Rishi Sunak |