Andy Burnham policies LIVE as Prime Minister tells Cabinet ‘we need to be a cost of living Government’ after first tax cut announcement

Along with the sixth new prime minister in a decade, the UK now has its eighth chancellor, ninth foreign secretary and 10th education secretary.

The turnover in Cabinet ministers since 2016 has been driven by the increasing scale and frequency of reshuffles carried out by successive premiers, with sweeping changes happening almost on an annual basis.

John Healey is the eighth new Chancellor of the Exchequer since 2016, in a sequence that began with Philip Hammond (2016-19), then Sajid Javid (2019-20), Rishi Sunak (2020-22), Nadhim Zahawi (63 days in 2022), Kwasi Kwarteng (31 days in 2022), Jeremy Hunt (2022-24) and most recently Rachel Reeves (2024-26).

By contrast, in the 10 years before 2016, only three people held the role of chancellor: Gordon Brown (up to 2007), Alistair Darling (2007-10) and George Osborne (2010-16).

There have been nine foreign secretaries in the past decade: Boris Johnson (2016-18), Jeremy Hunt (2018-19), Dominic Raab (2019-21), Liz Truss (2021-22), James Cleverly (2022-23), David Cameron (2023-24), David Lammy (2024-25), Yvette Cooper (2025-26) and now Ed Miliband.

This is more than twice the number in the preceding 10 years: Margaret Beckett (2006-07), David Miliband (2007-10), William Hague (2010-14) and Philip Hammond (2014-16).

The 10 education secretaries since 2016 began with Justine Greening (2016-18), then Damian Hinds (2018-19), Gavin Williamson (2019-21), Nadhim Zahawi (2021-22), Michelle Donelan (two days in 2022), James Cleverly (61 days in 2022), Kit Malthouse (49 days in 2022), Gillian Keegan (2022-24), Bridget Phillipson (2024-26) and now Lucy Powell.

There were just four education secretaries in the 10 years up to 2016: Alan Johnson (2006-07), Ed Balls (2007-10), Michael Gove (2010-14) and Nicky Morgan (2014-16).