Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Responsibilities
The Secretary of State has overall responsibility for the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. She has specific responsibilities for:
- budget, including Official Development Assistance (ODA)
- international relations
- senior appointments
- economic growth
Current role holder
The Rt Hon Dame Angela Eagle DBE MP
Dame Angela Eagle DBE was appointed Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on 20 July 2026.
She was previously Minister of State at both the Home Office (Security Minister) and the Cabinet Office from 12 June 2026 to 20 July 2026, Minister of State in the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs from 6 September 2025 to 12 June 2026, and Minister of State (Minister for Border Security and Asylum) at the Home Office from 8 July 2024 to 6 September 2025.
She was elected as the MP for Wallasey in the general election of July 2024.
Political career
Angela was first elected to Parliament in 1992, when she became the first ever Labour Member of Parliament for Wallasey.
In her time as MP for Wallasey, Angela has served as a minister in several departments. Under Tony Blair, these included Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Environment, Transport and the Regions; for Social Security and for Home Affairs. She also served as Opposition Whip under Tony Blair.
In Gordon Brown’s government she served as Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury and Minister of State for Pensions and Ageing Society.
In Ed Miliband’s shadow cabinet, she served as Shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury. In 2011, she became Shadow Leader of the House. In 2015, she was appointed as Shadow Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, a position she held until June 2016.
During her time as a backbencher, Angela has sat on the Treasury Select Committee and the Intelligence and Security Committee and held a number of positions within the Labour Party including membership of the National Executive Committee and Chair of the Equalities Committee.
Personal life
Angela is the second openly lesbian member of Parliament.
She is an Honorary Fellow of St John’s College Oxford, and was made a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 2021 for Parliamentary and political service.
Previous holders of this role
The Rt Hon Emma Reynolds MP
2025 to 2026
The Rt Hon Steve Reed OBE MP
2024 to 2025
The Rt Hon Steve Barclay MP
2023 to 2024
The Rt Hon Thérèse Coffey
2022 to 2023
The Rt Hon Ranil Jayawardena
2022 to 2022
The Rt Hon George Eustice
2020 to 2022
The Rt Hon Theresa Villiers
2019 to 2020
The Rt Hon Michael Gove
2017 to 2019
The Rt Hon Andrea Leadsom
2016 to 2017
The Rt Hon Elizabeth Truss
2014 to 2016
The Rt Hon Owen Paterson
2012 to 2014
Dame Caroline Spelman
2010 to 2012