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King Charles III

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William, Prince of Wales


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Charles III
(King-in-Council)


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Starmer ministry (L)

Keir Starmer (L)

Angela Rayner (L)


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Charles III


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The Lord Reed

The Lord Hodge


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Monetary Policy Committee


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Endorsements

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European Parliament elections (1979–2019)

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Scottish Parliament elections

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Northern Ireland Assembly elections

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Senedd elections

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UK referendums

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The Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster is a ministerial office<ref>House of Commons Disqualification Act 1975 c. 24, Schedule 2</ref> in the Government of the United Kingdom. Excluding the prime minister, the chancellor is the highest ranking minister in the Cabinet Office, immediately after the prime minister, and senior to the Minister for the Cabinet Office.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The role includes as part of its duties the administration of the estates and rents of the Duchy of Lancaster.<ref>Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster – Glossary page – UK Parliament Template:Webarchive. Parliament.uk (21 April 2010). Retrieved 30 September 2011.</ref>

Formally, the chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster is appointed by the Sovereign on the advice of the prime minister,<ref>FAQs, duchyoflancaster.co.uk. Archived 2009-09-01 on the Internet Archive.</ref><ref>The Government, Prime Minister and Cabinet: Directgov – Government, citizens and rights Template:Webarchive. Direct.gov.uk. Retrieved on 30 September 2011.</ref> and is answerable to Parliament for the governance of the Duchy.<ref>Template:Cite book. (Citing House of Commons Debates 17 November 1987 col 11, Standing Committee G.)</ref> In modern times, however, the involvement of the chancellor in the running of the day-to-day affairs of the Duchy is slight, and the office is held by a senior politician whose main role is usually quite different. In practical terms, it is a sinecure, allowing the prime minister to appoint an additional minister without portfolio to the Cabinet of the United Kingdom. The corresponding shadow minister is the shadow chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster.

The role is typically held by a close ally of the Prime Minister entrusted to support the delivery of their current priorities. In 2021, the role was endowed with responsibility for advising the prime minister on Brexit policy.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In the Starmer ministry, the role was given responsibility for supporting delivery of the government's strategic priorities, Cabinet Office policy, cleaning up politics, and national security and resilience.<ref name="Starmer ministry">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

HistoryEdit

Template:Moresources Originally, the chancellor was the chief officer in the daily management of the Duchy of Lancaster and the County Palatine of Lancaster (a county palatine merged into the Crown in 1399), but that estate is now run by a deputy, leaving the chancellor as a member of the Cabinet with little obligation in regard to the chancellorship. The position has often been given to a senior Cabinet minister with responsibilities in a particular area of policy for which there is no department with an appropriate portfolio.

In 1491, the office of Vice-Chancellor of the County Palatine of Lancaster was created. The position is now held by a judge of the Chancery Division of the High Court of Justice, who sits in the north west of England, and is no longer appointed to that position as legal officer of the Duchy.

Modern timesEdit

Under the Promissory Oaths Act 1868, the chancellor is required to take the oath of allegiance and the Official Oath.<ref>Promissory Oaths Act 1868 section 5 and Schedule</ref> The holder of the sinecure is a minister without portfolio; Sir Oswald Mosley, for example, focused on unemployment after being appointed to the position in 1929 during the second MacDonald ministry.<ref name="gunther1940">Template:Cite book</ref>

Following the Dardanelles campaign, Winston Churchill was in 1915 appointed Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, a humiliating loss of the trappings of power.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

The chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster is entitled to a salary under the Ministerial and Other Salaries Act 1975, but section 3 of the act provides that the salary "shall be reduced by the amount of the salary payable to him otherwise than out of moneys so provided in respect of his office".<ref>Ministerial and other Salaries Act 1975, sections 1 & 3 and schedule 1</ref> The office of the chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster is part of the Cabinet Office.<ref>Appropriation Act 2010, schedule 2 Part 2</ref>

From 1997 until 2009, the holder of the title also served as the Minister for the Cabinet Office. This applied in the case of Alan Milburn, who was given the title by Prime Minister Tony Blair in 2004 and at the same time rejoined the Cabinet. However, in the reshuffle of 5 June 2009, the chancellorship went to the Leader of the House of Lords, the Baroness Royall. In David Cameron's first cabinet, the chancellorship remained with the leader of the House of Lords until 2014.

When David Lidington was appointed chancellor on 8 January 2018, the position of Minister for the Cabinet Office was once again held concurrently. This continued until Michael Gove was appointed chancellor in July 2019. Michael Gove was given responsibility over the Cabinet Office, but did not initially hold the ministerial position of Minister for the Cabinet Office (which is not on a statutory footing). He was later granted that title in the 2020 Cabinet reshuffle and the two positions remained together until February 2022.

ResponsibilitiesEdit

In addition to administering the estates and rents of the Duchy of Lancaster, the chancellor is also a member of the cabinet and advises the prime minister on the development and implementation of government policy.<ref name="Starmer ministry"/> As of 2025, the Chancellor is presently responsible for:

  • Missions - supporting delivery of Government’s priorities
  • Oversight of all Cabinet Office policy
  • National security, resilience, and civil contingencies, including:
    • COBR
    • Resilience policy
    • Cyber security
    • State threats
    • National Security and Investment Act
  • Propriety and ethics
  • Public appointments
  • Major events policy<ref name="Starmer ministry"/>

Chancellors of the Duchy of LancasterEdit

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See alsoEdit

ReferencesEdit

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Attribution

Template:Duchy of Lancaster Template:Cabinet positions in the United Kingdom