Departments of the Government of the United Kingdom

The Government of the United Kingdom is divided into departments that each have responsibility, according to the government, for putting government policy into practice.^[1] There are currently 24 ministerial departments, 20 non-ministerial departments, and 422 agencies and other public bodies, for a total of 465 departments.^[2]

Ministerial departments

Ministerial departments are generally the most high-profile government departments and differ from the other two types of government departments in that they include ministers. A list of all ministerial departments is shown below.

Ministerial department	Minister responsible		Civil servant responsible	Ref.
Attorney General's Office		Richard Hermer, Baron Hermer Attorney General for England and Wales and Advocate General for Northern Ireland	Douglas Wilson Director-General	[3][4]
Cabinet Office		Pat McFadden MP Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster	Sir Chris Wormald Cabinet Secretary and Head of the Civil Service Catherine Little Permanent Secretary	[5]
Department for Business and Trade		Jonathan Reynolds MP Secretary of State for Business and Trade and President of the Board of Trade	Gareth Davies Permanent Secretary	[6]
Department for Culture, Media and Sport		Lisa Nandy MP Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport	Susannah Storey Permanent Secretary	[7][8]
Department for Education		Bridget Phillipson MP Secretary of State for Education	Susan Acland-Hood Permanent Secretary	[9][10]
Department for Energy Security and Net Zero		Ed Miliband MP Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero	Jeremy Pocklington Permanent Secretary
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs		Steve Reed MP Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs	Dame Tamara Finkelstein Permanent Secretary	[11][12]
Department for Science, Innovation and Technology		Peter Kyle MP Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology	Emran Mian Permanent Secretary
Department for Transport		Heidi Alexander MP Secretary of State for Transport	Dame Bernadette Kelly Permanent Secretary	[13][14]
Department for Work and Pensions		Liz Kendall MP Secretary of State for Work and Pensions	Sir Peter Schofield Permanent Secretary	[15][16]
Department of Health and Social Care		Wes Streeting MP Secretary of State for Health and Social Care	Samantha Jones Permanent Secretary	[17][18]
Export Credits Guarantee Department (trading as UK Export Finance)		Jonathan Reynolds MP Secretary of State for Business and Trade and President of the Board of Trade	Tim Reid Chief Executive	[19][20]
Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office		David Lammy MP Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs	Sir Olly Robbins Permanent Secretary	[21][22]
HM Treasury		Rachel Reeves MP Chancellor of the Exchequer and Second Lord of the Treasury	James Bowler Permanent Secretary	[23][24]
Home Office		Yvette Cooper MP Secretary of State for the Home Department	Dame Antonia Romeo Permanent Secretary	[25][26]
Ministry of Defence		John Healey MP Secretary of State for Defence	David Williams Permanent Secretary	[27][28]
Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government		Angela Rayner MP Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government and Deputy Prime Minister	Dame Sarah Healey Permanent Secretary	[29][30]
Ministry of Justice		Shabana Mahmood MP Secretary of State for Justice and Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain[31][32]	Jo Farrar Permanent Secretary and Clerk of the Crown in Chancery	[33]
Northern Ireland Office		Hilary Benn MP Secretary of State for Northern Ireland	Julie Harrison Permanent Secretary	[34]
Office of the Advocate General for Scotland		Catherine Smith, Baroness Smith of Cluny [35][36] Advocate General for Scotland	Neil Taylor Director and Solicitor to the Advocate General[37]	[38]
Office of the Leader of the House of Commons[n 1]		Lucy Powell MP[39][40] Leader of the House of Commons and Lord President of the Council	N/A	[41]
Office of the Leader of the House of Lords[n 1]		Angela Smith, Baroness Smith of Basildon [39][42] Leader of the House of Lords and Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal	N/A	[43]
Scotland Office		Ian Murray MP[35][44] Secretary of State for Scotland	Laurence Rockey Director	[45] [46]
Wales Office		Jo Stevens MP Secretary of State for Wales	Glynne Jones Director[47]	[48]

Non-ministerial departments

Non-ministerial departments are headed by civil servants and usually have a regulatory or inspection function.^[49] A list of all non-ministerial departments is shown below.

Non-ministerial department	Ref.
Charity Commission for England and Wales	[2]
Competition and Markets Authority	[2]
Crown Prosecution Service	[2]
Food Standards Agency	[2]
Forestry Commission	[2]
Government Actuary's Department	[2]
Government Legal Department	[2]
HM Land Registry	[2]
HM Revenue & Customs	[2]
National Savings and Investments	[2]
The National Archives	[2]
National Crime Agency	[2]
Office of Rail and Road	[2]
Office of Gas and Electricity Markets	[2]
Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation	[2]
Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills	[2]
Serious Fraud Office	[2]
Supreme Court of the United Kingdom	[2]
UK Statistics Authority	[2]
Water Services Regulation Authority	[2]

Agencies and other public bodies

Government departments in this third and final category can generally be split into five types:^[49]

• Executive agencies, which usually provide government services rather than decide policy
• Executive non-departmental public bodies, which do work for the government in specific areas
• Advisory non-departmental public bodies, which provide independent and expert advice to ministers
• Tribunal non-departmental public bodies, which are part of the justice system and have jurisdiction over a specific area of the law
• Independent monitoring boards, which are responsible for the running of prisons and the treatment of prisoners

See also

• Office of the Prime Minister
• Politics of the United Kingdom
• Civil Service

Notes

1. Part of the Cabinet Office.