Minister without Portfolio

A Minister without Portfolio is a government minister with no specific responsibilities.

Ministers without Portfolio in the United Kingdom

In the United Kingdom, it is often a Cabinet position, and is sometimes used to get people such as the Chairman of the Conservative Party or the Chair of the Labour Party into Cabinet meetings. The sinecure positions of Lord Privy Seal and Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster can also be used for equivalent effect.

Lord Fitzwilliam (1806-1807)
Lord Camden (1812-1827)
Lord Mulgrave (1819-1820)
Lord Lansdowne (Apr-Jul 1827 and 1852-1858)
The Duke of Portland (Jul-Sep 1827)
Lord Carlisle (1830-1834)
The Duke of Wellington (1841-1846)
Lord John Russell (1853-1854)
Spencer Horatio Walpole (1867-1868)
Sir Michael Hicks Beach (1887-1888)
Lord Lansdowne (1915-1916)
Arthur Henderson (1916-1917)
Lord Milner (1916-1918)
Jan Smuts (1917-1919)
Sir Edward Carson (1917-1919)
George Barnes (1917-1920)
Sir Eric Geddes (Jan-Oct 1919)
Sir Laming Worthington-Evans (1920-1921)
Christopher Addison (1921-1922)
Anthony Eden (Jun-Dec 1935)
Lord Percy (1935-1936)
Edward Leslie Burgin (Apr-Jul 1939)
Lord Hankey (1939-1940)
Arthur Greenwood (1940-1942)
Sir William Jowitt (1942-1944)
A. V. Alexander (Oct-Dec 1946)
Arthur Greenwood (Apr-Sept 1947)
Viscount Mills (1961-1962)
William Francis Deedes (1962-1964)
Lord Carrington (1963-1964)
Lord Young (1984-1985)
Jeremy Hanley (1994-1995)
Brian Mawhinney (1995-1997)
Peter Mandelson (1997-1998)
Charles Clarke (2001-2002)
John Reid (2002-2003)
Ian McCartney (2003-)

In the Executive Yuan of the Republic of China there are several such ministers (政務委員) at one time:


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