Heidi Alexander has been appointed as transport secretary after the resignation of Louise Haigh.
Ms Haigh resigned over a past conviction for fraud in connection with an incident in which she incorrectly reported her mobile phone had been stolen during a mugging.
Ms Alexander, who was elected as MP for Swindon South in July, had been a minister of state in the Ministry of Justice.
She also represented Lewisham East in the Commons from 2010 until 2018, when she resigned to take up a role as Sadiq Khan’s deputy mayor for transport in London.
During her first stint as an opposition MP, Ms Alexander held various front bench posts, including as shadow health secretary, and committee memberships.
Heidi Alexander MP @Heidi_Labour has been appointed Secretary of State for Transport @TransportGovUK. pic.twitter.com/AB271CdEbL
— UK Prime Minister (@10DowningStreet) November 29, 2024
The news of Ms Haigh's conviction broke as she made a speech setting out her ‘vision’ for an integrated national transport strategy inspired by the French city of Dijon.
In her resignation letter to prime minister Keir Starmer, she explained that, having been mugged in London in 2013 when she was 24, she gave the police a list of possessions that she believed had been stolen, including her work phone.
She said that ‘some time later’ she discovered that the handset was still in her house. She said that she should have immediately informed her employer, ‘and not doing so straight away was a mistake’.
Ms Haigh wrote: ‘I appreciate that whatever the facts of the matter, this issue will inevitably be a distraction from delivering on the work of this government and the policies to which we are both committed.’
Ms Haigh referenced a number of things she had achieved since taking up the role in July, including Royal Assent for the Bill bringing the railways back into public ownership and taking the first steps to putting buses back in the hands of passengers and local people, with the Buses Bill to be laid next month.
She added: ‘My appointment to your Cabinet as the youngest ever woman remains one of the proudest achievements of my life, but not as proud as the steps we took to improve the lives of the British people.’
Ms Haigh appears to be remaining as an MP. In his response, Mr Starmer hinted at her possible return in future.
He thanked her ‘for all you have done to deliver this Government’s ambitious transport agenda’ and added ‘I know you still have a huge contribution to make in the future.’
