Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

The secretary of state for environment, food and rural affairs, also referred to as the environment secretary, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, with overall responsibility for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra). The incumbent is a member of the Cabinet of the United Kingdom.

The office holder works alongside the other Defra ministers. The corresponding shadow minister is the shadow secretary of state for environment, food and rural affairs.

Responsibilities
The secretary of state has two main responsibilities at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, to:
 * bear overall responsibility for all departmental issues.
 * lobby for the United Kingdom in other international negotiations on sustainable development and climate change.

List of environment secretaries
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"


 * colspan=9 |
 * colspan=9 |

Secretaries of state for the environment (1970–1997)
! colspan=3 | Secretary of State ! colspan=2 | Term of office ! colspan=2 | Party ! Ministry


 * - style="height:1em"
 * style="background-color: " |
 * No image.svg
 * Peter Walker MP for Worcester
 * 15 October 1970
 * 5 November 1972
 * style="background-color: " |
 * Conservative
 * rowspan=2 | Heath


 * - style="height:1em"
 * style="background-color: " |
 * Geoffrey Rippon (1970).jpg
 * Geoffrey Rippon MP for Hexham
 * 5 November 1972
 * 4 March 1974
 * style="background-color: " |
 * Conservative


 * - style="height:1em"
 * style="background-color: " |
 * Charles-Anthony-Raven-Crosland (cropped).jpg
 * Anthony Crosland MP for Great Grimsby
 * 5 March 1974
 * 8 April 1976
 * style="background-color: " |
 * Labour
 * Wilson (III & IV)


 * - style="height:1em"
 * style="background-color: " |
 * No image.svg
 * Peter Shore MP for Stepney and Poplar
 * 8 April 1976
 * 4 May 1979
 * style="background-color: " |
 * Labour
 * Callaghan


 * - style="height:1em"
 * style="background-color: " |
 * Lord Heseltine (6969083278).jpg
 * Michael Heseltine MP for Henley
 * 5 May 1979
 * 6 January 1983
 * style="background-color: " |
 * Conservative
 * rowspan=2 | Thatcher I


 * - style="height:1em"
 * style="background-color: " |
 * Official portrait of Lord King of Bridgwater crop 2.jpg
 * Tom King MP for Bridgwater
 * 6 January 1983
 * 11 June 1983
 * style="background-color: " |
 * Conservative


 * - style="height:1em"
 * style="background-color: " |
 * No image.svg
 * Patrick Jenkin MP for Wanstead and Woodford
 * 11 June 1983
 * 2 September 1985
 * style="background-color: " |
 * Conservative
 * rowspan=3 | Thatcher II


 * - style="height:1em"
 * style="background-color: " |
 * Official portrait of Lord Baker of Dorking 2020 crop 2.jpg
 * Kenneth Baker MP for Mole Valley
 * 2 September 1985
 * 21 May 1986
 * style="background-color: " |
 * Conservative


 * - style="height:1em"
 * rowspan=2 style="background-color: " |
 * rowspan=2 | No image.svg
 * rowspan=2 | Nicholas Ridley MP for Cirencester and Tewkesbury
 * rowspan=2 | 21 May 1986
 * rowspan=2 | 24 July 1989
 * rowspan=2 style="background-color: " |
 * rowspan=2 | Conservative


 * - style="height:1em"
 * rowspan=2 | Thatcher III


 * - style="height:1em"
 * style="background-color: " |
 * Official portrait of Lord Patten of Barnes crop 2.jpg
 * Chris Patten MP for Bath
 * 24 July 1989
 * 28 November 1990
 * style="background-color: " |
 * Conservative


 * - style="height:1em"
 * style="background-color: " |
 * Lord Heseltine (6969083278).jpg
 * Michael Heseltine MP for Henley
 * 28 November 1990
 * 11 April 1992
 * style="background-color: " |
 * Conservative
 * Major I


 * - style="height:1em"
 * style="background-color: " |
 * Official portrait of Lord Howard of Lympne crop 2, 2023.jpg
 * Michael Howard MP for Folkestone and Hythe
 * 11 April 1992
 * 27 May 1993
 * style="background-color: " |
 * Conservative
 * rowspan=2 | Major II


 * - style="height:1em"
 * style="background-color: " |
 * Official portrait of Lord Deben crop 2.jpg
 * John Gummer MP for Suffolk Coastal
 * 27 May 1993
 * 2 May 1997
 * style="background-color: " |
 * Conservative


 * colspan=9 |
 * colspan=9 |

Secretaries of state for the environment, transport and the regions (1997–2001)

 * - style="height:1em"
 * style="background-color: " |
 * John Prescott on his last day as Deputy Prime Minister, June 2007.jpg
 * John Prescott MP for Kingston upon Hull East
 * 2 May 1997
 * 8 June 2001
 * style="background-color: " |
 * Labour
 * Blair I


 * colspan=9 |
 * colspan=9 |

Secretaries of state for environment, food and rural affairs (2001–present)

 * - style="height:1em"
 * rowspan=2 style="background-color: " |
 * rowspan=2 | Official portrait of Rt Hon Margaret Beckett MP crop 2.jpg
 * rowspan=2 | Margaret Beckett MP for Derby South
 * rowspan=2 | 8 June 2001
 * rowspan=2 | 5 May 2006
 * rowspan=2 style="background-color: " |
 * rowspan=2 | Labour
 * Blair II


 * - style="height:1em"
 * rowspan=2 | Blair III


 * - style="height:1em"
 * style="background-color: " |
 * David Miliband 2.jpg
 * David Miliband MP for South Shields
 * 5 May 2006
 * 28 June 2007
 * style="background-color: " |
 * Labour


 * - style="height:1em"
 * style="background-color: " |
 * Official portrait of Rt Hon Hilary Benn MP crop 2.jpg
 * Hilary Benn MP for Leeds Central
 * 28 June 2007
 * 11 May 2010
 * style="background-color: " |
 * Labour
 * Brown


 * - style="height:1em"
 * style="background-color: " |
 * Official portrait of Dame Caroline Spelman crop 2.jpg
 * Caroline Spelman MP for Meriden
 * 12 May 2010
 * 4 September 2012
 * style="background-color: " |
 * Conservative
 * rowspan=3 | Cameron–Clegg (Con.–L.D.)


 * - style="height:1em"
 * style="background-color: " |
 * Official portrait of Rt Hon Owen Paterson MP crop 2.jpg
 * Owen Paterson MP for North Shropshire
 * 4 September 2012
 * 14 July 2014
 * style="background-color: " |
 * Conservative

! rowspan=2 style="background-color: " |
 * - style="height:1em"
 * rowspan=2 | Official portrait of Elizabeth Truss crop 2.jpg
 * rowspan=2 | Liz Truss MP for South West Norfolk
 * rowspan=2 | 15 July 2014
 * rowspan=2 | 14 July 2016
 * rowspan=2 style="background-color: " |
 * rowspan=2 | Conservative


 * - style="height:1em"
 * Cameron II


 * - style="height:1em"
 * style="background-color: " |
 * Official portrait of Rt Hon Andrea Leadsom MP crop 2.jpg
 * Andrea Leadsom MP for South Northamptonshire
 * 14 July 2016
 * 11 June 2017
 * style="background-color: " |
 * Conservative
 * May I


 * - style="height:1em"
 * style="background-color: " |
 * Official portrait of Rt Hon Michael Gove MP crop 2.jpg
 * Michael Gove MP for Surrey Heath
 * 11 June 2017
 * 24 July 2019
 * style="background-color: " |
 * Conservative
 * May II


 * - style="height:1em"
 * style="background-color: ; border:none" |
 * rowspan=2 | Theresa_Villiers_Official_Portrait.jpg
 * rowspan=2 | Theresa Villiers MP for Chipping Barnet
 * rowspan=2 | 24 July 2019
 * rowspan=2 | 13 February 2020
 * rowspan=2 style="background-color: " |
 * rowspan=2 | Conservative
 * Johnson I


 * - style="height:1em"
 * style="background-color:; border:none" |
 * rowspan=2 | Johnson II


 * - style="height:1em"
 * style="background-color: " |
 * Official portrait of George Eustice MP crop 2.jpg
 * George Eustice MP for Camborne and Redruth
 * 13 February 2020
 * 6 September 2022
 * style="background-color: " |
 * Conservative


 * - style="height:1em"
 * style="background-color: " |
 * Ranil Jayawardena official portrait (cropped).jpg
 * Ranil Jayawardena MP for North East Hampshire
 * 6 September 2022
 * 25 October 2022
 * style="background-color: " |
 * Conservative
 * Truss


 * - style="height:1em"
 * style="background-color: " |
 * Thérèse Coffey Official Cabinet Portrait, September 2022 (cropped).jpg
 * Thérèse Coffey MP for Suffolk Coastal
 * 25 October 2022
 * 13 November 2023
 * style="background-color: " |
 * Conservative
 * rowspan="2"| Sunak


 * - style="height:1em"
 * style="background-color: " |
 * Steve Barclay Official Cabinet Portrait, November 2023 (cropped).jpg
 * Steve Barclay MP for North East Cambridgeshire
 * 13 November 2023
 * 5 July 2024
 * style="background-color: " |
 * Conservative


 * - style="height:1em"
 * style="background-color: " |
 * Official_portrait_of_Mr_Steve_Reed_crop_2.jpg
 * Steve Reed MP for Streatham and Croydon North
 * 5 July 2024
 * Incumbent
 * style="background-color: " |
 * Labour
 * rowspan="2"| Starmer
 * }