Identifying patterns of long tenures, sacrificial pawns, and career trajectories
Senior Cabinet Members (Commons) from 1970 onwards
Each bubble represents one cabinet member, colored by political party. Horizontal position (x-axis) shows number of separate spells; vertical position (y-axis) shows average tenure per spell. Bubble size indicates spell length consistency (larger = more varied spell lengths). Position patterns: bottom-left = stalwarts (few spells, long average tenure), right side = sacrificial pawns (many spells, varied lengths).
Detailed breakdown of appointment spells for key individuals, showing how tenure is distributed across separate appointments.
Cabinet members with significant total tenure, low variability in spell length, and typically few separate appointments. These are the steady hands who maintained consistent roles across years or parliaments.
| Name | Party | Avg Tenure (yrs) | Num Spells | Consistency (CV) | Posts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| James Brown | Labour | 10.2 | 1 | 0.00 | Chancellor of the Exchequer |
| Roger Edwards | Conservative | 8.1 | 1 | 0.00 | Secretary of State for Wales |
| Tessa Jowell | Labour | 6.1 | 1 | 0.00 | Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport |
| Clare Short | Labour | 6.0 | 1 | 0.00 | Secretary of State for International Development |
| George Duncan Smith | Conservative | 5.9 | 1 | 0.00 | Secretary of State for Work and Pensions |
| Norman Lever | Labour | 5.2 | 1 | 0.00 | Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster |
| John Morris | Labour | 5.2 | 1 | 0.00 | Secretary of State for Wales |
| Joel Barnett | Labour | 5.2 | 1 | 0.00 | Chief Secretary to the Treasury |
| Denis Healey | Labour | 5.1 | 1 | 0.00 | Chancellor of the Exchequer |
| Patrick Mayhew | Conservative | 5.1 | 1 | 0.00 | Secretary of State for Northern Ireland |
Members with 4+ separate spells and high variance in spell duration. These individuals were frequently appointed and removed, often suggesting they held difficult or politically sensitive positions.
| Name | Party | Avg Tenure (yrs) | Num Spells | Consistency (CV) | Posts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Geoffrey Hoon | Labour | 1.9 | 5 | 1.13 | Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Lord Chancellor's Department), Minister of State (Lord Chancellor's Department), Secretary of State for Defence... |
| Michelle Donelan | Conservative | 0.4 | 5 | 0.98 | Secretary of State for Education, Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology... |
| Nadhim Zahawi | Conservative | 0.3 | 4 | 0.90 | Secretary of State for Education, Chancellor of the Exchequer, Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster... |
| Therese Coffey | Conservative | 1.3 | 4 | 0.89 | Parliamentary Secretary and Deputy Leader of the House of Commons, Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, Secretary of State for Health and Social Care... |
| William Whitelaw | Conservative | 2.1 | 4 | 0.88 | Lord President of the Council and Leader of the House Lords (Privy Council Office), Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Secretary of State for Employment... |
| Grant Shapps | Conservative | 1.5 | 5 | 0.87 | Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office), Secretary of State for Transport, Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy... |
| Jeremy Hunt | Conservative | 2.2 | 5 | 0.87 | Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, Secretary of State for Health, Secretary of State for Health and Social Care... |
| Peter Hain | Labour | 2.2 | 5 | 0.86 | Secretary of State for Wales, Leader of the House of Commons and Lord Privy Seal, Secretary of State for Northern Ireland... |
| Michael Gove | Conservative | 1.8 | 9 | 0.83 | Secretary of State for Education, Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice, Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs... |
| Thomas King | Conservative | 1.8 | 5 | 0.82 | Secretary of State for Environment, Secretary of State for Transport, Secretary of State for Employment... |
Cabinet members who held a significant role for an extended period but only served once. They either specialized in their role or left frontbench politics after their tenure.
| Name | Party | Avg Tenure (yrs) | Num Spells | Consistency (CV) | Posts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| James Brown | Labour | 10.2 | 1 | 0.00 | Chancellor of the Exchequer |
| Roger Edwards | Conservative | 8.1 | 1 | 0.00 | Secretary of State for Wales |
| Tessa Jowell | Labour | 6.1 | 1 | 0.00 | Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport |
| Clare Short | Labour | 6.0 | 1 | 0.00 | Secretary of State for International Development |
| George Duncan Smith | Conservative | 5.9 | 1 | 0.00 | Secretary of State for Work and Pensions |
| Norman Lever | Labour | 5.2 | 1 | 0.00 | Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster |
| John Morris | Labour | 5.2 | 1 | 0.00 | Secretary of State for Wales |
| Joel Barnett | Labour | 5.2 | 1 | 0.00 | Chief Secretary to the Treasury |
| Denis Healey | Labour | 5.1 | 1 | 0.00 | Chancellor of the Exchequer |
| Patrick Mayhew | Conservative | 5.1 | 1 | 0.00 | Secretary of State for Northern Ireland |
Cabinet members appointed to a single role for a brief period (less than one year), who were never recalled to Cabinet. These may represent specialized crisis managers, appointment mistakes, or ill-fated experimental placements.
| Name | Party | Avg Tenure (yrs) | Num Spells | Consistency (CV) | Posts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nadine Dorries | Conservative | 1.0 | 1 | 0.00 | Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport |
| Douglas Hurd | Conservative | 1.0 | 1 | 0.00 | Secretary of State for Northern Ireland |
| Edmund Hughes | Conservative | 1.0 | 1 | 0.00 | Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities) |
| Michael Wills | Labour | 1.0 | 1 | 0.00 | Parliamentary Secretary (Lord Chancellor's Department) |
| Jeremy Hanley | Conservative | 1.0 | 1 | 0.00 | Minister without Portfolio |
| Jonathan Aitken | Conservative | 1.0 | 1 | 0.00 | Chief Secretary to the Treasury |
| Robert Ainsworth | Labour | 0.9 | 1 | 0.00 | Secretary of State for Defence |
| Nia Griffith | Labour | 0.9 | 1 | 0.00 | Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities) |
| Gary Streeter | Conservative | 0.9 | 1 | 0.00 | Parliamentary Secretary (Lord Chancellor's Department) |
| Barbara Keeley | Labour | 0.9 | 1 | 0.00 | Parliamentary Secretary and Deputy Leader of the House of Commons |
Cabinet members who held 4 or more different posts throughout their careers, suggesting generalists or political survivors.
| Name | Party | Avg Tenure (yrs) | Num Spells | Consistency (CV) | Posts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Michael Gove | Conservative | 1.8 | 9 | 0.83 | Secretary of State for Education, Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice, Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs... |
| Alistair Darling | Labour | 2.3 | 7 | 0.50 | Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Secretary of State for Social Security, Secretary of State for Work and Pensions... |
| Kenneth Clarke | Conservative | 2.1 | 7 | 0.43 | Secretary of State for Employment, Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, Secretary of State for Health... |
| Sajid Javid | Conservative | 0.9 | 6 | 0.46 | Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government... |
| John Reid | Labour | 1.2 | 6 | 0.63 | Secretary of State for Scotland, Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Minister without Portfolio and Labour Party Chair... |
| Stephen Barclay | Conservative | 0.8 | 7 | 0.66 | Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Minister for the Cabinet Office and Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster... |
| Geoffrey Hoon | Labour | 1.9 | 5 | 1.13 | Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Lord Chancellor's Department), Minister of State (Lord Chancellor's Department), Secretary of State for Defence... |
| Thomas King | Conservative | 1.8 | 5 | 0.82 | Secretary of State for Environment, Secretary of State for Transport, Secretary of State for Employment... |
| John MacGregor | Conservative | 1.8 | 5 | 0.24 | Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Secretary of State for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Secretary of State for Education and Science... |
| Grant Shapps | Conservative | 1.5 | 5 | 0.87 | Minister without Portfolio (Cabinet Office), Secretary of State for Transport, Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy... |