Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change

United Kingdom Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change
Royal Arms as used by Her Majesty's Government
Department of Energy and Climate Change
Style	The Right Honourable (Formal prefix) Energy Secretary
Appointer	Elizabeth II
Inaugural holder	Ed Miliband
Formation	3 October 2008
Final holder	Amber Rudd
Abolished	14 July 2016
Deputy	Minister of State for Energy
Website	www.decc.gov.uk/

The secretary of state for energy and climate change was a British Government cabinet position from 2008 to 2016. The Department of Energy and Climate Change was created on 3 October 2008 when then-Prime Minister Gordon Brown reshuffled his Cabinet.

Between 1974 and 1992, the post was known as secretary of state for energy.

The energy and climate change secretary revived the earlier post of the secretary of state for energy as head of the Department of Energy, existing from 1974 to 1992. After which, the Department of Energy was merged into the Department of Trade and Industry under the Conservative government of Sir John Major in 1992.

Sixteen years later, immediately prior to the creation of the new department, energy policy was the responsibility of the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (itself now a defunct government department, superseded by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills).

Former Labour leader Ed Miliband was the inaugural secretary of state at DECC. After Labour lost the 2010 general election and the Cameron–Clegg coalition was formed, Chris Huhne was appointed as his successor. On 3 February 2012, Huhne resigned from the post after it was announced that he would be prosecuted for perverting the course of justice, in relation to accusations that he passed on speeding penalties to his ex-wife to avoid losing his own licence. The post was taken over by Ed Davey on the same day, and served until the Liberal Democrats left government, and Davey lost his seat, in 2015.

Amber Rudd was the final secretary of state at DECC, until she became Home Secretary. The post was formed into the new Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy by new prime minister Theresa May in July 2016.

The role is now part of the portfolio belonging to the secretary of state for energy security and net zero.

List of secretaries of state

Colour key
   Conservative    Labour    Liberal Democrats

Secretary of State for Energy (1974–1992)
Secretary of State			Term of office		Political party	Prime Minister
	The Lord Carrington		8 January 1974	4 March 1974	Conservative		Edward Heath
	Eric Varley		5 March 1974	10 June 1975	Labour		Harold Wilson
	Tony Benn		10 June 1975	4 May 1979	Labour
							James Callaghan
	David Howell		5 May 1979	14 September 1981	Conservative		Margaret Thatcher
	Nigel Lawson		14 September 1981	11 June 1983	Conservative
	Peter Walker		11 June 1983	13 June 1987	Conservative
	Cecil Parkinson		13 June 1987	24 July 1989	Conservative
	John Wakeham		24 July 1989	11 April 1992	Conservative
							John Major
Department abolished 1992. Functions transferred to the Department of Trade and Industry.
Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change (2008–2016)
Secretary of State			Term of office		Political party	Prime Minister
	Ed Miliband		3 October 2008	11 May 2010	Labour		Gordon Brown
	Chris Huhne		12 May 2010	3 February 2012	Liberal Democrats		David Cameron (Coalition)
	Ed Davey		3 February 2012	8 May 2015	Liberal Democrats
	Amber Rudd		11 May 2015	14 July 2016	Conservative		David Cameron (II)
Department abolished 2016, merged into Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy.

See also

• Minister of State at the Department of Energy and Climate Change
• Shadow Secretary of State for Climate Change and Net Zero
• Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero