May 2021 British shadow cabinet reshuffle

rdf:langString May 2021 British shadow cabinet reshuffle

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rdf:langString Keir Starmer, Leader of the Opposition in the United Kingdom, carried out a reshuffle of his shadow cabinet on 9 May 2021. This followed disappointing results for the Labour Party, including historic defeat in the Hartlepool by-election and the loss of hundreds of councillors in local elections across England. The major outcome of the reshuffle was the move of Anneliese Dodds, Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer, which was seen as a reflection of her failure to effectively oppose Rishi Sunak. Rachel Reeves was appointed as the new shadow chancellor and Angela Rayner succeeded Reeves as Shadow Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster. Nick Brown stood down as Chief Whip of the Labour Party and Starmer appointed his deputy Alan Campbell to succeed him. Valerie Vaz was sacked as Shadow Leader of the House of Commons and was replaced by Thangam Debbonaire, who in turn was succeeded as Shadow Housing Secretary by Lucy Powell. Starmer also created four new Shadow Secretary of State positions, for the Future of Work, Mental Health, Child Poverty, and Young People and Democracy. On 8 May, the initial plans were leaked to journalists by an anonymous source saying that he was going to sack Rayner and other senior shadow ministers. This was heavily criticised by Labour members and MPs. Following this backlash, the reshuffle was carried out on 9 May and less extensive than the leaked information said had been planned. On 10 May, Kim Johnson, the Labour MP for Liverpool Riverside, publicly described Starmer's treatment of Rayner as a "despicable act of cowardice". Confidence in Starmer's leadership and authority was considered by some to have been undermined by the events of 8 to 9 May.