Leader of the House of Commons

Name 	Entered office 	Left office 	Party 	Notes
Robert Walpolefrom 1725, Sir Robert Walpole 	4 April 1721 	11 February 1742 	Whig 	Prime Minister
Samuel Sandys 	16 February 1742 	27 August 1743 	Whig 	Chancellor of the Exchequer
Henry Pelham 	27 August 1743 	6 March 1754 	Whig 	Prime Minister
Sir Thomas Robinson 	23 March 1754 	October 1755 	Whig 	Southern Secretary
Henry Fox 	14 November 1755 	13 November 1756 	Whig 	Southern Secretary
William Pitt the Elder 	13 November 1756 	6 April 1757 	Whig 	Southern Secretary
? 	6 April 1757 	27 June 1757 	 	
William Pitt the Elder 	27 June 1757 	9 October 1761 	Whig 	Southern Secretary
George Grenville 	9 October 1761 	14 October 1762 	Whig 	Treasurer of the Navy and then Northern Secretary
Henry Fox 	14 October 1762 	16 April 1763 	Whig 	Paymaster-General
George Grenville 	16 April 1763 	13 July 1765 	Whig 	Prime Minister
Henry Seymour Conway 	13 July 1765 	20 January 1768 	Whig 	Southern Secretary 1765-1766; Northern Secretary 1766-1768
Lord North 	20 January 1768 	27 March 1782 	Tory 	Chancellor of the Exchequer; Prime Minister from 1770
Charles James Fox 	27 March 1782 	5 July 1782 	Whig 	Foreign Secretary
Thomas Townshend 	10 July 1782 	6 March 1783 	Whig 	Home Secretary
William Pitt the Younger 	6 March 1783 	2 April 1783 	Whig 	Chancellor of the Exchequer
Charles James Fox and Lord North 	2 April 1783 	19 December 1783 	Whig and Tory 	Foreign Secretary and Home Secretary
William Pitt the Younger 	19 December 1783 	14 March 1801 	Tory 	Prime Minister
Henry Addington 	17 March 1801 	10 May 1804 	Tory 	Prime Minister
William Pitt the Younger 	10 May 1804 	23 January 1806 	Tory 	Prime Minister
Charles James Fox 	7 February 1806 	13 September 1806	Whig 	Foreign Secretary
Viscount Howick 	13 September 1806	31 March 1807 	Whig 	Foreign Secretary
Spencer Perceval 	31 March 1807 	11 May 1812 	Tory 	Chancellor of the Exchequer; from 1809, Prime Minister
Viscount Castlereaghfrom 1821, the Marquess of Londonderry	11 May 1812 	12 August 1822 	Tory 	Foreign Secretary
George Canning 	16 September 1822	8 August 1827 	Tory 	Foreign Secretary to April 1827; Prime Minister April-August 1827
William Huskisson 	8 August 1827 	22 January 1828 	Tory 	Colonial Secretary
Robert Peelfrom 1830, Sir Robert Peel 	22 January 1828 	22 November 1830 	Tory 	Home Secretary
Viscount Althorp 	22 November 1830 	10 November 1834 	Whig 	Chancellor of the Exchequer
Sir Robert Peel 	10 December 1834 	18 April 1835 	Conservative 	Prime Minister
Lord John Russell 	18 April 1835 	30 August 1841 	Whig 	Home Secretary 1835-1839; Colonial Secretary 1839-1841
Sir Robert Peel 	30 August 1841 	30 June 1846 	Conservative 	Prime Minister
Lord John Russell 	30 June 1846 	23 February 1852 	Whig 	Prime Minister
Benjamin Disraeli 	23 February 1852 	19 December 1852 	Conservative 	Chancellor of the Exchequer
Lord John Russell 	19 December 1852 	24 January 1855 	Liberal 	Foreign Secretary 1852-1853; Minister without Portfolio 1853-1854; Lord President 1854-1855
The Viscount Palmerston 	24 January 1855 	20 February 1858 	Liberal 	Home Secretary to 6 February 1855; Prime Minister 1855-1858
Benjamin Disraeli 	20 February 1858 	12 June 1859 	Conservative 	Chancellor of the Exchequer
The Viscount Palmerston 	12 June 1859 	18 October 1865 	Liberal 	Prime Minister
William Gladstone 	18 October 1865 	28 June 1866 	Liberal 	Chancellor of the Exchequer
Benjamin Disraeli 	28 June 1866 	3 December 1868 	Conservative 	Chancellor of the Exchequer to February 1868; Prime Minister February-December 1868
William Gladstone 	3 December 1868 	20 February 1874 	Liberal 	Prime Minister
Benjamin Disraeli 	20 February 1874 	21 August 1876 	Conservative 	Prime Minister
Sir Stafford Northcote 	21 August 1876 	23 April 1880 	Conservative 	Chancellor of the Exchequer
William Gladstone 	23 April 1880 	23 June 1885 	Liberal 	Prime Minister
Sir Michael Hicks-Beach 	23 June 1885 	1 February 1886 	Conservative 	Chancellor of the Exchequer
William Gladstone 	1 February 1886 	25 July 1886 	Liberal 	Prime Minister
Lord Randolph Churchill 	3 August 1886 	22 December 1886 	Conservative 	Chancellor of the Exchequer
William Henry Smith 	14 January 1887 	6 October 1891 	Conservative 	First Lord of the Treasury
Arthur Balfour 	October 1891 	15 August 1892 	Conservative 	First Lord of the Treasury
William Gladstone 	15 August 1892 	5 March 1894 	Liberal 	Prime Minister
Sir William Harcourt 	5 March 1894 	25 June 1895 	Liberal 	Chancellor of the Exchequer
Arthur Balfour 	25 June 1895 	5 December 1905 	Conservative 	First Lord of the Treasury; from 1902, Prime Minister
Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman 	5 December 1905 	7 April 1908 	Liberal 	Prime Minister
Herbert Henry Asquith 	7 April 1908 	7 December 1916 	Liberal 	Prime Minister
Andrew Bonar Law 	7 December 1916 	23 March 1921 	Conservative 	Chancellor of the Exchequer 1916-1919; Lord Privy Seal 1919-1921
Austen Chamberlain 	23 March 1921 	23 October 1922 	Conservative 	Lord Privy Seal
Andrew Bonar Law 	23 October 1922 	22 May 1923 	Conservative 	Prime Minister
Stanley Baldwin 	22 May 1923 	22 January 1924 	Conservative 	Prime Minister
Ramsay MacDonald 	22 January 1924 	4 November 1924 	Labour 	Prime Minister; John Clynes, the Lord Privy Seal, effectively led the commons as Deputy Leader
Stanley Baldwin 	4 November 1924 	5 June 1929 	Conservative 	Prime Minister
Ramsay MacDonald 	5 June 1929 	7 June 1935 	Labour/National Labour	Prime Minister; from 1931 Stanley Baldwin, the Lord President, effectively led the House as Deputy Leader
Stanley Baldwin 	7 June 1935 	28 May 1937 	Conservative 	Prime Minister; effectively leader since 1931
Neville Chamberlain 	28 May 1937 	10 May 1940 	Conservative 	Prime Minister
Winston Churchill 	10 May 1940 	19 February 1942 	Conservative 	Prime Minister
Sir Stafford Cripps 	19 February 1942 	22 November 1942 	Labour 	Lord Privy Seal
Anthony Eden 	22 November 1942 	26 July 1945 	Conservative 	Foreign Secretary
Herbert Morrison 	27 July 1945 	9 March 1951 	Labour 	Lord President
James Chuter Ede 	9 March 1951 	26 October 1951 	Labour 	Home Secretary
Harry Crookshank 	26 October 1951 	20 December 1955 	Conservative 	Minister of Health 1951-1952; Lord Privy Seal 1952-1955
Rab Butler 	20 December 1955 	9 October 1961 	Conservative 	Lord Privy Seal 1955-1959; Home Secretary from 1957
Iain Macleod 	9 October 1961 	20 October 1963 	Conservative 	Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster
Selwyn Lloyd 	20 October 1963 	16 October 1964 	Conservative 	Lord Privy Seal
Herbert Bowden 	16 October 1964 	11 August 1966 	Labour 	Lord President
Richard Crossman 	11 August 1966 	18 October 1968 	Labour 	Lord President
Fred Peart 	18 October 1968 	19 June 1970 	Labour 	Lord President
William Whitelaw 	20 June 1970 	7 April 1972 	Conservative 	Lord President
Robert Carr 	7 April 1972 	5 November 1972 	Conservative 	Lord President
Jim Prior 	5 November 1972 	4 March 1974 	Conservative 	Lord President
Edward Short 	4 March 1974 	8 April 1976 	Labour 	Lord President
Michael Foot 	8 April 1976 	4 May 1979 	Labour 	Lord President
Norman St John-Stevas 	5 May 1979 	5 January 1981 	Conservative 	Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster
Francis Pym 	5 January 1981 	7 April 1982 	Conservative 	Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster January-September 1981; Lord President September 1981 - April 1982
John Biffen 	7 April 1982 	13 June 1987 	Conservative 	Lord President 1982-1983; Lord Privy Seal 1983-1987
John Wakeham 	13 June 1987 	24 July 1989 	Conservative 	Lord Privy Seal 1987-1988; Lord President 1988-1989
Sir Geoffrey Howe 	24 July 1989 	1 November 1990 	Conservative 	Deputy Prime Minister and Lord President
John MacGregor 	2 November 1990 	10 April 1992 	Conservative 	Lord President
Tony Newton 	10 April 1992 	2 May 1997 	Conservative 	Lord President
Ann Taylor 	2 May 1997 	27 July 1998 	Labour 	Lord President
Margaret Beckett 	27 July 1998 	8 June 2001 	Labour 	Lord President
Robin Cook 	8 June 2001 	18 March 2003 	Labour 	Lord President
John Reid 	4 April 2003 	13 June 2003 	Labour 	Lord President
Peter Hain 	13 June 2003 	6 May 2005 	Labour 	Lord Privy Seal and Welsh Secretary
Geoff Hoon 	6 May 2005 	current incumbent	Labour 	Lord Privy Seal