Men hold all four great offices of state for first time since Tories elected
Only eight women have ever served in one of the roles.
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.The four great offices of state are being held by privately educated men for the first time since the Tories came to power more than a decade ago following Rishi Sunak’s Cabinet reshuffle.
Former prime minister Lord Cameron has been appointed Foreign Secretary while his predecessor James Cleverly has taken over from Suella Braverman as Home Secretary, with Jeremy Hunt remaining as Chancellor.
The changes mean that for the first time since the Conservatives won the 2010 election, there are no women occupying any of the four most senior positions in Cabinet.
Three of the office-holders – Prime Minister Mr Sunak, Mr Hunt and Lord Cameron – graduated with first class honours in philosophy, politics and economics (PPE) from the University of Oxford.
All four were educated at either public or private school, while two – Mr Sunak, who has Indian heritage, and Mr Cleverly, who has West African heritage – are from minority ethnic backgrounds.
Only eight women have ever served in one of the roles – Margaret Thatcher as prime minister, Margaret Beckett as foreign secretary, Jacqui Smith as home secretary, Theresa May as both home secretary and PM, Amber Rudd as home secretary followed by Priti Patel and Ms Braverman and Liz Truss as foreign secretary and PM.
No woman has yet held the role of chancellor.
The Truss ministry was notable for initially having no white men serving in the great offices of state for the first time in British political history, with Kwasi Kwarteng becoming the first black chancellor.