Labour MP Keir Mather becomes youngest government minister in 191 years after reshuffle
Mather, 27, who is gay, entered Parliament in 2023 after taking Selby and Ainsty in a by-election, overturning a large Conservative majority
By Callum Wells
Labour MP Keir Mather has become the youngest government minister since William Gladstone in 1834.
Mather, 27, who is gay, entered Parliament in 2023 after taking Selby and Ainsty in a by-election, overturning a large Conservative majority. Now renamed Selby, the constituency was held by Mather at the 2024 general election, where he secured 46.3 per cent of the vote against the Conservatives’ 25.6 per cent.
On Monday 8 September, prime minister Keir Starmer promoted him to parliamentary under-secretary of state at the Department for Transport during a reshuffle. Mather had previously served as an assistant government whip.
“Youngest minister since Gladstone with the potential to go as far” – health secretary Wes Streeting
Gladstone was 25 when he joined government, 191 years ago. He went on to serve as prime minister across four separate terms, spending 12 years in office.
Health secretary Wes Streeting welcomed Mather’s promotion, writing on X: “Youngest minister since Gladstone with the potential to go as far, which I’m sure will attract some commentary.
“That commentary should include sharp mind, excellent judgment, empathetic leader and one of the nicest people in politics.”
Vocal supporter of trans rights
Responding online, Mather said: “It’s a privilege to join [transport secretary] Heidi Alexander and a fantastic team. Keeping Britain moving is central to achieving economic growth. Looking forward to getting started.”
Alexander replied: “Together, we will continue to drive forward this Labour government’s work to rebuild a transport system Britain can rely on.”
Mather has been a vocal supporter of trans rights, telling The Times in 2023: “A woman is like my mum or my stepsister, somebody who is born biologically a woman. But there is a very small minority of people who feel they’ve been born into the wrong gender and they deserve respect and care.”
“I strongly disagree with her outlook and approach to the issue” – Mather on Germaine Greer’s views on trans issues
At an Oxford Union debate in 2018, he reportedly called feminist Germaine Greer “abhorrent” over her views on trans issues. Asked about the remarks after becoming an MP, he told The Spectator: “What I said is on the record. I strongly disagree with her outlook and approach to the issue.”
The reshuffle followed the resignation of Angela Rayner as deputy prime minister. Yvette Cooper was moved to the Foreign Office, while Shabana Mahmood became the UK’s first Muslim woman home secretary.
Mahmood said on her appointment: “It is the honour of my life. The first responsibility of government is the safety of its citizens. Every day in this job, I will be devoted to that purpose.”
Meanwhile, Sam Carling, who won North West Cambridgeshire in July 2024, has become the “baby of the House”. Carling is the first MP to have been born in the 21st century.