Sir Ed Davey has unveiled his Liberal Democrat frontbench, which he pledges will “hold the new [Labour] government to account as a responsible opposition.”
The new frontbench announcement follows Davey’s conference speech on Tuesday, in which he hit out at the Conservative Party as “unfit for opposition” and promised to “cut through the government’s doom and gloom.”
Davey picked his new team of spokespeople from a batch of 72 MPs, following the Lib Dems’ historic result at the general election in July. Davey’s band of MPs make up the largest third party in the House of Commons in a hundred years.
Daisy Cooper retains her post as deputy leader of the Liberal Democrats, but will also take on additional responsibility as the party’s Treasury spokesperson.
Cooper’s predecessor in the role, Sarah Olney, is now the Lib Dems’ Cabinet Office spokesperson.
The party is also pledging a renewed focus on Scotland and Wales ahead of elections there in 2026. As such, Christine Jardine, the MP for Edinburgh West since 2017, will serve as the party’s Scotland spokesperson. The newly elected MP for Brecon, Radnor and Cwm Tawe, David Chadwick, will be Wales spokesperson.
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Expectedly, a wave of new Liberal Democrat MPs have been appointed to the frontbench, including Lisa Smart as home affairs spokesperson and Calum Miller as foreign affairs spokesperson.
Announcing his party’s new top team, Ed Davey said: “My new frontbench will champion the people’s priorities, ensuring we hold the new government to account as a responsible opposition.
“I am humbled by the result of the General Election and the millions of voters who put their trust in the Liberal Democrats, including many for the first time. We will stand up for our communities every day on the issues that matter most, fixing health and care services, tackling the cost of living crisis and protecting our precious environment.
“I am so proud of my entire team of 72 Liberal Democrat MPs who will serve as strong local champions in Westminster as we clean up the mess left by the Conservative government.”
The Lib Dem’s new frontbench, in full, is as follows:
- Leader of the Liberal Democrats – Ed Davey MP
- Deputy Leader and Treasury Spokesperson – Daisy Cooper MP
- Chief Whip – Wendy Chamberlain MP
- Health and Social Care Spokesperson – Helen Morgan MP
- Education, Children and Families Spokesperson – Munira Wilson MP
- Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Spokesperson – Tim Farron MP
- Cabinet Office Spokesperson – Sarah Olney MP
- Foreign Affairs Spokesperson – Calum Miller MP
- Home Affairs Spokesperson – Lisa Smart MP
- Women and Equalities and Scotland Spokesperson – Christine Jardine MP
- Justice Spokesperson – Josh Babarinde MP
- Business Spokesperson – Sarah Gibson MP
- Energy Security and Net Zero Spokesperson – Pippa Heylings MP
- Housing, Communities and Local Government Spokesperson – Vikki Slade MP
- Transport Spokesperson – Paul Kohler MP
- Science, Innovation and Technology Spokesperson – Victoria Collins MP
- Culture, Media and Sport Spokesperson – Max Wilkinson MP
- Defence Spokesperson – Helen Maguire MP
- Work and Pensions Spokesperson – Steve Darling MP
- Wales Spokesperson – David Chadwick MP
- Northern Ireland Spokesperson – Al Pinkerton MP
- London Spokesperson – Luke Taylor MP
- Hospitals and Primary Care Spokesperson – Jess Brown-Fuller MP
- Care and Carers Spokesperson – Alison Bennett MP
- Mental Health Spokesperson – Danny Chambers MP
- Universities and Skills Spokesperson – Ian Sollom MP
- Trade Spokesperson – Clive Jones MP
- International Development Spokesperson – Monica Harding MP
- Europe Spokesperson – James MacCleary MP
- Housing and Planning Spokesperson – Gideon Amos MP
- Shadow Leader of the House of Commons – Marie Goldman MP
- Shadow Attorney General – Ben Maguire MP
- Deputy Chief Whip – Tom Morrison MP
Josh Self is Editor of Politics.co.uk, follow him on X/Twitter here.
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