Her Majesty's Principal Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union or, informally, Brexit Secretary, was a secretary of state in the

Government of the United Kingdom ga, Rialtas a Shoilse gd, Riaghaltas a Mhòrachd , image = HM Government logo.svg , image_size = 220px , image2 = Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom (HM Government).svg , image_size2 = 180px , caption = Royal Arms , date_est ...

, responsible for the business of the Department for Exiting the European Union, as well as for the UK's withdrawal from the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are located primarily in Europe, Europe. The union has a total area of ...

(EU), informally referred to as "

Brexit Brexit (; a portmanteau of "British exit") was the Withdrawal from the European Union, withdrawal of the United Kingdom (UK) from the European Union (EU) at 23:00 Greenwich Mean Time, GMT on 31 January 2020 (00:00 1 February 2020 Central Eur ...

". The secretary of state oversaw

Brexit negotiations Between 2017 and 2019, representatives of the United Kingdom and the European Union negotiated the terms for Brexit, the planned withdrawal of the UK from the EU. These negotiations arose following the decision of the Parliament of the United ...

following a 2016 referendum, in which a majority voted in favour of exiting the EU. The officeholder was a member of the

Cabinet Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to: Furniture * Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers * Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets * Filin ...

. The position was created on 13 July 2016, at the outset of the

premiership of Theresa May Theresa May's term as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom began on 13 July 2016, when she accepted an invitation of Queen Elizabeth II to form a government, following the resignation of her predecessor David Cameron in the aftermath o ...

. The office was abolished on 31 January 2020, as the United Kingdom left the European Union. The Minister of State for Exiting the European Union deputised for the secretary of state. The corresponding shadow minister was the

Shadow Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union In British politics, the Shadow Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, or informally Shadow Brexit Secretary, was a position within the opposition's shadow cabinet that dealt with issues surrounding the UK withdrawal from the EU. ...

. The secretary of state was also scrutinised by the Exiting the European Union Select Committee. This page also includes the portfolios of Chief Negotiator for Exiting the European Union and Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union.

History

May reportedly ordered civil servants to find a building to house a new Department for Exiting the European Union, to be headed by the secretary of state. The headquarters of the

Department of Energy and Climate Change The Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) was a department of the Government of the United Kingdom created on 3 October 2008, by Prime Minister Gordon Brown to take over some of the functions related to energy of the Department for Busin ...

(DECC) at Whitehall Place, which was to be vacated once the DECC was merged into the newly created

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) is a department of His Majesty's Government. The department was formed during a machinery of government change on 14 July 2016, following Theresa May's appointment as Prim ...

, was viewed as a potential site for the department. The department later occupied

9 Downing Street 9 Downing Street is one of the buildings situated on Downing Street in the City of Westminster in London, England. It has been used as a separate address to the better known 10 Downing Street since 2001 for various government functions. Histor ...

. The inaugural holder was David Davis MP, a longtime

Eurosceptic Euroscepticism, also spelled as Euroskepticism or EU-scepticism, is a political position involving criticism of the European Union (EU) and European integration. It ranges from those who oppose some EU institutions and policies, and seek refor ...

who campaigned for the UK to leave the EU. Davis is a former

chairman of the Conservative Party The chairman of the Conservative Party in the United Kingdom is responsible for party administration and overseeing the Conservative Campaign Headquarters, formerly Conservative Central Office. When the Conservatives are in government, the off ...

who served in the government of John Major as

Minister of State for Europe The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Europe, formerly the Minister of State for Europe is a ministerial position within the Government of the United Kingdom, in charge of affairs with Europe. The Minister can also be responsible for gov ...

(1994–97) and in the

Shadow Cabinet of David Cameron The list that follows are the Shadow Cabinets led by David Cameron from 2005 to 2010, before he became Prime Minister. Shadow Cabinet (8 December 2005 – 2 July 2007) Shadow Cabinet (2 July 2007 – 13 June 2008) Shadow Cabinet (13 June ...

shadow home secretary In British politics, the Shadow Home Secretary (formally known as the Shadow Secretary of State for the Home Department) is the person within the shadow cabinet who shadows the Home Secretary; this effectively means scrutinising government poli ...

. Davis resigned on 8 July 2018 shortly before midnight;

Dominic Raab Dominic Rennie Raab (; born 25 February 1974) is a British politician who has served as Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Secretary of State for Justice, and Lord Chancellor since October 2022, having previously served from 2021 t ...

was appointed on 9 July as his replacement and resigned on 15 November 2018. Steve Barclay, who had been serving as Minister of State for Health, was selected as Raab's successor on 16 November 2018.

List of secretaries of state for exiting the European Union (Brexit Secretaries)

Colour key (for political parties):

List of Chief Negotiators for Exiting the European Union

Colour key (for political parties):

List of Ministers of State for Exiting the European Union

List of Parliamentary Under-Secretaries of State for Exiting the European Union

Colour key (for political parties):

References

External links

Davis' resignation letter and May's reply in full, ''BBC News'', 9 July 2018

Department for Exiting the European Union
{{DEFAULTSORT:Secretary Of State For Exiting The European Union 2016 establishments in the United Kingdom 2020 disestablishments in the United Kingdom Brexit Consequences of the 2016 United Kingdom European Union membership referendum Lists of government ministers of the United Kingdom Ministerial offices in the United Kingdom Ministers and ministries responsible for European affairs * United Kingdom and the European Union Defunct ministerial offices in the United Kingdom

History

List of secretaries of state for exiting the European Union (Brexit Secretaries)

List of Chief Negotiators for Exiting the European Union

List of Ministers of State for Exiting the European Union

List of Parliamentary Under-Secretaries of State for Exiting the European Union

See also

References

External links