Foreign Secretary
The secretary of state for foreign, Commonwealth and development affairs, also referred to as the foreign secretary, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, with overall responsibility for the work of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office. Seen as one of the most senior ministers in the government and a Great Office of State, the incumbent is a member of the Cabinet of the United Kingdom, fourth in the ministerial ranking. The office holder works alongside the other Foreign Office ministers. The corresponding shadow ministers are the shadow secretary of state for foreign  and Commonwealth affairs and the shadow secretary of state for international development. The performance of the secretary of state is also scrutinised by the Foreign Affairs Select Committee. The current foreign secretary is Liz Truss MP, appointed in the September 2021 cabinet reshuffle. Responsibilities. Corresponding to what is generally known as a foreign minister in many other countries, the foreign secretary's remit includes: Residence. The official residence of the foreign secretary is 1 Carlton Gardens, in London. The foreign secretary also has the use of Chevening House, a country house in Kent, South East England and works out of  the Foreign Office in Whitehall. History. The title secretary of state in the government of England dates back to the early 17th century. The position of secretary of state for foreign affairs was created in the British governmental reorganisation of 1782, in which the Northern and Southern Departments became the Foreign Office and Home Office respectively. The India Office which, like the Colonial Office and the Dominions Office, had been a constituent predecessor department of the Foreign Office, was closed down in 1947. Eventually, the position of secretary of state for foreign and Commonwealth affairs came into existence in 1968  with the merger of the functions of secretary of the state for foreign affairs and the secretary of state for Commonwealth affairs into a single department of state. Margaret Beckett, appointed in 2006 by Tony Blair, was the first woman to have held the post. The post of secretary of state for foreign, Commonwealth and development affairs was created in 2020 when position holder Dominic Raab absorbed the responsibilities of the secretary of state for international development. List of foreign secretaries. Secretaries of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (1968–2020). Post created through the merger of the Foreign Office and  the Commonwealth Office. Secretaries of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs (2020–present). Post created through the merger of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the Department for International Development.