Stephen Paul Barclay (born 3 May 1972)[1][2] is a British politician who served in various cabinet positions under prime ministers Theresa May, Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak between 2018 and 2024, lastly as the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs from 2023 to 2024.

[3] Born in Lancashire and privately educated at King Edward VII School, Lytham, Barclay attended the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst and served in the British Army on a gap year commission.

Barclay was appointed Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union by Theresa May following the resignation of Dominic Raab in November 2018.

He was retained in the position by Boris Johnson and remained in office until the United Kingdom officially left the EU on 31 January 2020.

In July 2022, he became Secretary of State for Health and Social Care following the resignation of Sajid Javid; he was removed from the position by Johnson's successor Liz Truss in September 2022.

[10] In 2007, Barclay took over as organiser of the Carlton Club political dinner, which raises funds for the Conservative Party's target seats.

[9] Barclay stood in Manchester Blackley at the 1997 general election, coming second with 15.3% of the vote behind the Labour candidate Graham Stringer.

[11] He stood in Lancaster and Wyre at the 2001 general election, coming second with 42.2% of the vote behind the incumbent Labour MP Hilton Dawson.

[19] He ceased to be Brexit Secretary at 11:00 pm on 31 January 2020, the moment the Department for Exiting the European Union was closed down as the UK formally left the EU.

In May 2020, Barclay appeared on BBC's Question Time and was corrected by presenter Fiona Bruce about the number of people who had received the Government's COVID-19 testing.

Chief executive officer of the NHS Confederation, Matthew Taylor, said: "Mr Barclay would do well to remember that he is taking on one of the most efficient healthcare systems in the world".

[29] In April 2023, The Guardian reported that unnamed sources said concerns had been raised about Barclay's alleged conduct towards civil servants.

[33] Despite these concerns, in 2024 he announced a block on bonuses' payouts to executives of water companies which are polluting rivers, lakes and seas.