Leaders of political parties in the United Kingdom
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This article lists the Leaders of political parties in the United Kingdom to provide insight into the politics of the United Kingdom. It contains details including which party the leader belongs to, the leader's seat, and which form of leadership that person holds.
Leaders in the House of Commons
[edit]National party leaders are usually members of parliament. Some (including Welsh, Scottish and Northern Irish parties) designate a separate leader in the House of Commons, or their leader is absent from the House of Commons and holds membership of a devolved body.
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| Keir Starmer Leader of the Labour Party |
Kemi Badenoch Leader of the Conservative Party |
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| Leader | Party | Leader's seat | Number of seats[1] | Leader since | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Keir Starmer | Labour Party | Holborn and St Pancras | 402 | 4 April 2020 | |
| Kemi Badenoch | Conservative Party | North West Essex | 121 | 2 November 2024 | |
| Ed Davey | Liberal Democrats | Kingston and Surbiton | 72 | 27 August 2020 | |
| Stephen Flynn[a] | Scottish National Party | Aberdeen South | 9 | 6 December 2022[2] | |
| N/A[c] | Sinn Féin | N/A | 7 [c] | ||
| Nigel Farage | Reform UK | Clacton | 5 | 3 June 2024 | |
| Gavin Robinson[b] | Democratic Unionist Party | Belfast East | 5 | 29 March 2024[3] | |
| Carla Denyer and Adrian Ramsay |
Green Party of England and Wales | Bristol Central (Carla Denyer) Waveney Valley (Adrian Ramsay) |
4 | 1 October 2021 | |
| Liz Saville Roberts[d] | Plaid Cymru | Dwyfor Meirionnydd | 4 | 14 June 2017[4] | |
| Colum Eastwood | Social Democratic and Labour Party | Foyle | 2 | 14 November 2015 | |
| Sorcha Eastwood | Alliance Party of Northern Ireland | Lagan Valley | 1 | 4 July 2024 | |
| Robin Swann | Ulster Unionist Party | South Antrim | 1 | 4 July 2024 | |
| Jim Allister | Traditional Unionist Voice | North Antrim | 1 | 4 July 2024 | |
- ^a Leads the party in the House of Commons. The leader of the Scottish National Party (SNP), John Swinney has been a Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) since 1999.
- ^b Interim leader following the resignation of Jeffrey Donaldson.
- ^c In accordance with the party's policy of abstentionism, no elected Sinn Féin members of parliament have ever sat in the House of Commons.
- ^d Leads the party in the House of Commons. Plaid Cymru's leader, Rhun ap Iorwerth, has sat as a member of the Senedd (Welsh Parliament) for Ynys Môn since 2 August 2013.
Leaders in the House of Lords
[edit]| Leader | Party | Members[5] | Leader since | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nicholas True, Baron True | Conservative Party | 272 | 14 July 2016 | |
| Baroness Smith of Basildon[6] | Labour Party | 186 | 27 May 2015 | |
| Lord Newby[7] | Liberal Democrats | 78 | 13 September 2016 | |
Leaders in the Scottish Parliament
[edit]| Leader | Party | Leader's seat | Number of seats |
Leader since | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| John Swinney | Scottish National Party | Perthshire North | 64 | 8 May 2024 | |
| Russell Findlay | Scottish Conservatives | West Scotland (region) | 31 | 27 September 2024 | |
| Anas Sarwar | Scottish Labour | Glasgow (region) | 22 | 27 February 2021 | |
| Patrick Harvie | Scottish Greens | Glasgow (region) | 7 | 22 September 2008 | |
| Lorna Slater | Lothian (region) | 1 August 2019 | |||
| Alex Cole-Hamilton | Scottish Liberal Democrats | Edinburgh Western | 4 | 20 August 2021 | |
Leaders in the Senedd
[edit]| Leader | Party | Leader's seat | Number of seats |
Leader since | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eluned Morgan | Welsh Labour | Mid and West Wales (region) | 30 | 24 July 2024 | |
| Andrew RT Davies | Welsh Conservatives | South Wales Central (region) | 16 | 24 January 2021 | |
| Rhun ap Iorwerth | Plaid Cymru – Party of Wales | Ynys Môn | 13 | 16 June 2023 | |
| Jane Dodds | Welsh Liberal Democrats | Mid and West Wales (region) | 1 | 3 November 2017 | |
Leaders in the Northern Ireland Assembly
[edit]| Leader | Party | Leader's seat | Number of seats |
Leader since | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Michelle O'Neill | Sinn Féin | Mid Ulster | 27 | 23 January 2017 | |
| N/A[f] | Democratic Unionist Party | Belfast East (as an MP) | 25 | 1 May 1997 | |
| Naomi Long | Alliance Party of Northern Ireland | Belfast East | 17 | October 2016 | |
| Doug Beattie | Ulster Unionist Party | Upper Bann | 9 | 17 May 2021 | |
| N/A[g] | Social Democratic and Labour Party | Foyle (as an MP) | 8 | 12 December 2019 | |
| Jim Allister | Traditional Unionist Voice | North Antrim | 1 | 7 December 2007 | |
| Collective leadership | People Before Profit | N/A | 1 | N/A | |
- ^f The interim leader of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), Gavin Robinson has sat in the House of Commons as an MP for Belfast East since 2015.
- ^g The leader of the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP), Colum Eastwood has sat in the House of Commons as an MP for Foyle since 2019.
References
[edit]- ^ "State of the parties - MPs and Lords - UK Parliament". members.parliament.uk. Retrieved 9 November 2024.
- ^ Sim, Philip (6 December 2022). "Stephen Flynn elected as new SNP leader at Westminster". BBC News. Retrieved 7 January 2023.
- ^ "DUP: Gavin Robinson appointed interim leader by party officers". BBC News. 29 March 2024. Retrieved 13 April 2024.
- ^ "Liz Saville Roberts new Plaid Cymru leader in Commons". BBC News. 14 June 2017. Retrieved 29 January 2018.
- ^ "Lords membership - MPs and Lords - UK Parliament". members.parliament.uk. Retrieved 9 November 2024.
- ^ "Parliamentary career for Baroness Smith of Basildon - MPs and Lords - UK Parliament". members.parliament.uk. Retrieved 26 May 2020.
- ^ "Dick Newby is new Lib Dem Lords leader". Lib Dem Voice.
