Ministerial ranking

The ministerial ranking, Cabinet ranking, order of precedence in Cabinet or order of precedence of ministers is the "pecking order" or relative importance of senior ministers in the UK government.

Use
The ministerial ranking is said by Peter Hennessy to be decided by the Prime Minister alone and reportedly by the Cabinet Office Precedent Book as being wholly decided by the Prime Minister, "guided partly by tradition and partly by political and personal considerations". In his autobiography David Cameron said that it "...combines seniority of post and the length of time as a cabinet minister to determine the rank of everyone present".

The Cabinet Manual states that when the Prime Minister is unable to attend Cabinet, or the chair and any deputy chair of a Cabinet committee are absent, the next most senior minister in the ministerial ranking should take the chair.

One constitutional law academic, Rodney Brazier, has suggested that if the Prime Minister were to die suddenly, the monarch could ask the Deputy Prime Minister, or if there was no such person available, the next most senior MP in the ministerial ranking to take temporary charge of the government.

Importance
Hennessy says that it "...matters more than one thinks in establishing the power of a Prime Minister in relation to his most senior colleagues" and Harold Wilson has been noted to be one prime minister to take the ranking seriously. It has been noted that it was through the ministerial ranking rather than being first secretary that George Brown was able to exercise "...deputising duties". It has also been said that, upon his 1995 appointment as deputy prime minister and first secretary, Michael Heseltine also insisted that he became number two on the ministerial ranking.

However, David Cameron has stated that it was "something we had never bothered with" and Harold Macmillan has reportedly said that he would have preferred an order based on the traditional dignity of offices, deeming it "all rather nonsense".

Additionally, in April 2020, when Boris Johnson was moved into intensive care with COVID-19, a government press release stated that he had asked First Secretary of State Dominic Raab "to deputise for him where necessary", but the ministerial ranking on the parliament.uk website around the time showed Rishi Sunak technically ranking above Raab.

<!--Minister Constituency ! Office(s) ! Department ! Took Office

MP for Holborn and St Pancras (UK Parliament constituency) First Lord of the Treasury
 * scope="row" | Keir Starmer
 * scope="row" | Keir Starmer
 * Prime Minister
 * Cabinet Office
 * July 5, 2024

MP for Ashton-under-Lyne (UK Parliament constituency)
 * scope="row" | Angela Rayner
 * scope="row" | Angela Rayner
 * Deputy Prime Minister Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government
 * Cabinet Office Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
 * July 5, 2024

MP for Leeds West and Pudsey (UK Parliament constituency) Second Lord of the Treasury
 * scope="row" | Rachel Reeves
 * scope="row" | Rachel Reeves
 * Chancellor of the Exchequer
 * HM Treasury
 * July 5, 2024

MP for Pontefract, Castleford and Knottingley (UK Parliament constituency)
 * scope="row" | Yvette Cooper
 * scope="row" | Yvette Cooper
 * Secretary of State for the Home Department
 * Home Office
 * July 5, 2024

MP for Doncaster North (UK Parliament constituency)
 * scope="row" | Ed Miliband
 * scope="row" | Ed Miliband
 * Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero
 * Department for Energy Security and Net Zero
 * July 5, 2024

MP for Tottenham (UK Parliament constituency)
 * scope="row" | David Lammy
 * scope="row" | David Lammy
 * Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs
 * Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office
 * July 5, 2024

MP for Wolverhampton South East (UK Parliament constituency)
 * scope="row" | Pat McFadden
 * scope="row" | Pat McFadden
 * Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster
 * Cabinet Office
 * July 5, 2024

MP for Birmingham Ladywood (UK Parliament constituency) Secretary of State for Justice
 * scope="row" | Shabana Mahmood
 * scope="row" | Shabana Mahmood
 * Lord Chancellor
 * Ministry of Justice
 * July 5, 2024

MP for Ilford North (UK Parliament constituency)
 * scope="row" | Wes Streeting
 * scope="row" | Wes Streeting
 * Secretary of State for Health and Social Care
 * Department of Health and Social Care
 * July 5, 2024

MP for Stalybridge and Hyde (UK Parliament constituency) President of the Board of Trade UK Export Finance
 * scope="row" | Jonathan Reynolds
 * scope="row" | Jonathan Reynolds
 * Secretary of State for Business and Trade
 * Department for Business and Trade
 * July 5, 2024

MP for Leicester West (UK Parliament constituency)
 * scope="row" | Liz Kendall
 * scope="row" | Liz Kendall
 * Secretary of State for Work and Pensions
 * Department for Work and Pensions
 * July 5, 2024

MP for Rawmarsh and Conisbrough (UK Parliament constituency)
 * scope="row" | John Healey
 * scope="row" | John Healey
 * Secretary of State for Defence
 * Ministry of Defence
 * July 5, 2024

MP for Sheffield Heeley (UK Parliament constituency)
 * scope="row" | Louise Haigh
 * scope="row" | Louise Haigh
 * Secretary of State for Transport
 * Department for Transport
 * July 5, 2024

MP for Hove and Portslade (UK Parliament constituency)
 * scope="row" | Peter Kyle
 * scope="row" | Peter Kyle
 * Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology
 * Department for Science, Innovation and Technology
 * July 5, 2024

MP for Leeds South (UK Parliament constituency)
 * scope="row" | Hilary Benn
 * scope="row" | Hilary Benn
 * Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
 * Northern Ireland Office
 * July 5, 2024

MP for Edinburgh South (UK Parliament constituency)
 * scope="row" | Ian Murray (Scottish politician)
 * scope="row" | Ian Murray (Scottish politician)
 * Secretary of State for Scotland
 * Scotland Office
 * July 5, 2024

MP for Houghton and Sunderland South (UK Parliament constituency) Minister for Women and Equalities
 * scope="row" | Bridget Phillipson
 * scope="row" | Bridget Phillipson
 * Secretary of State for Education
 * Department for Education
 * July 5, 2024

MP for Wigan (UK Parliament constituency)
 * scope="row" | Lisa Nandy
 * scope="row" | Lisa Nandy
 * Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
 * Department for Culture, Media and Sport
 * July 5, 2024

MP for Tynemouth (UK Parliament constituency) (Government Chief Whip)
 * scope="row" | Alan Campbell (politician)
 * scope="row" | Alan Campbell (politician)
 * Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury
 * HM Treasury
 * July 5, 2024

MP for Bristol North West (UK Parliament constituency)
 * scope="row" | Darren Jones (politician)
 * scope="row" | Darren Jones (politician)
 * Chief Secretary to the Treasury
 * HM Treasury
 * July 5, 2024

The Baroness Smith of Basildon]] Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal
 * scope="row" | [[Angela Smith, Baroness Smith of Basildon|Angela Smith
 * scope="row" | [[Angela Smith, Baroness Smith of Basildon|Angela Smith
 * Leader of the House of Lords
 * Office of the Leader of the House of Lords
 * July 5, 2024

MP for Manchester Central (UK Parliament constituency) Lord President of the Council
 * scope="row" | Lucy Powell
 * scope="row" | Lucy Powell
 * Leader of the House of Commons
 * Office of the Leader of the House of Commons
 * July 5, 2024

MP for Cardiff East (UK Parliament constituency)
 * scope="row" | Jo Stevens
 * scope="row" | Jo Stevens
 * Secretary of State for Wales
 * Wales Office
 * July 5, 2024

MP for Streatham and Croydon North (UK Parliament constituency)
 * scope="row" | Steve Reed (politician)
 * scope="row" | Steve Reed (politician)
 * Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
 * Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
 * July 5, 2024

MP for Oxford East (UK Parliament constituency) and Development Office)]] and Development Office]]
 * scope="row" | Anneliese Dodds
 * scope="row" | Anneliese Dodds
 * Minister for Women and Equalities [[Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office|Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth
 * Department of Education [[Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office|Foreign, Commonwealth
 * July 5, 2024
 * }-->