With her appointment as Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, Peckham MP Miatta Fahnbulleh becomes the first MP of the 2024 intake to ascend to a Secretary of State position.
Other members of the class of 2024 join her in the Cabinet – Hamish Falconer as Minister for Intergovernmental Relations and European Relations, and Kanishka Narayan as Minister for Artificial Intelligence – but no other first-time MPs from 2024 have been given responsibility for a department.
Fahnbulleh’s rapid rise into this role is built on her long-term career in policy development and advocacy, her experience as a DESNZ and MHCLG minister in Starmer’s Government, and her political and ideological alignment with the new Prime Minister Andy Burnham.
Fahnbulleh was the first minister to resign from Starmer’s Government following Labour’s poor May 2026 local election results, stating the need for a change in leadership.
Her resignation as Minister for Devolution, Faith and Communities demonstrated her alliance with the Burnham camp, as rumours swirled of a plot among Labour MPs to remove Keir Starmer as Prime Minister. Interviewed after her resignation, Fahnbulleh was asked if she wanted Burnham to be the next PM. She responded:
“If he was here, of course. You know, Andy is a brilliant politician. He’s a great visionary. He has done amazing stuff in Manchester, and he is the sort of politician I would back.”
Two days later, Josh Simons resigned from his Makerfield seat to trigger the by-election that would bring Burnham back into the Commons, and ultimately to No. 10.
As the consensus solidified around Burnham as the main challenger to Starmer’s leadership, media outlets began to report that Fahnbulleh was “helping to work on policy” for Burnham’s team.
After Burnham’s victory in the Makerfield by-election, Fahnbulleh was once again touted as an MP likely to receive a high-profile role in a potential Burnham Government.
Fahnbulleh’s policy advisory capacity appears to have been initially understated, with the Financial Times reporting on 8 July that rather than just advising the PM-in-waiting, she had handed Burnham “an economic blueprint for his new Government, focused on “immediately” tackling the cost of living… and more public control over public services.”
By 12 July 2026, the week before Burnham was confirmed as the leader of the Labour leadership election, the BBC were describing Fahnbulleh as a “key adviser to Andy Burnham.”
As an architect of the policy priorities espoused by Burnham in his inaugural speech as PM, Fahnbulleh is clearly a major influence on policy development in this Government.
Her immediate contributions to the Burnham Government explain why she was in line for patronage. However, Fahnbulleh’s career – both political and non-political – shows why she was picked for the energy department.
Graduating with a BA in PPE from Oxford, Fahnbulleh then specialised with a PHD in economic development from LSE, which she completed in 2005. Subsequently, Fahnbulleh worked in the civil service, including as the Head of Cities in the policy unit at the Cabinet Office from 2011 to 2013.
She has also worked as a Director of Policy and Research at IPPR from 2017 and led the New Economics Foundation (NEF) think tank as Chief Executive Officer from 2017 until 2024, leaving the role to focus on her successful election campaign.
The New Economics Foundation’s missions are a good indication of Fahnbulleh’s political ideology and policy priorities.
The NEF’s “mission has been to transform the economy so it works for people and the planet”, guided by three ambitions: a fast and fair transition to a green economy and equitable transformation to address the climate crisis; economic security for all through “effective and sustainable public services [which give] everyone access to life’s essentials”, and shifting power to people and communities.
With a focus on economic security, accessible public services and devolution of power, Fahnbulleh is clearly aligned with Burnham’s “Manchesterism” ideology, and her support for a green economy, a just transition, and action to tackle the climate crisis explains her suitability (or perhaps her personal preference) to lead DESNZ.
While Fahnbulleh’s ideology and policy priorities can be inferred from her career, and in her contributions to Burnham’s initial policy platform, she has been less able to articulate the nuances of her ideology since being elected to Parliament.
In 2024, reportedly a close ally of then-incoming DESNZ Secretary of State, Ed Miliband, Fahnbulleh found herself in the rare position of entering Parliament as an appointed minister: Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Energy Consumers.
Her maiden speech was one of only a few opportunities she has had to speak about her ideology outside the constraints of a ministerial role. In her speech, she highlighted her determination to fix an economy that “is failing people” and said this had motivated her to pursue economics and campaign for economic change. She highlighted the impacts of poverty, and the need to support people’s ability to access the basics. Fahnbulleh said her constituents:
“need change that will end the sense of being ground down, end the constant survival mode that so many people find themselves in, and rekindle the hope that has been beaten out… While the task feels insurmountable, what gives me hope is that those on our side have always grasped for big ideas to change the country”.
Her focus on big ideas, fundamental change, and giving communities power over their own futures fundamentally align with the policy priorities Burnham has set out so far: creating a “new political model and a new economic model”; “[taking] power out of here and carry[ing] it into every postcode in the land”; and “put[ting] life’s essentials back under stronger public control to make them affordable.”
While the new DESNZ agenda has yet to be set out in detail, we can expect the principles that underpin Fahnbulleh’s ideology to be core to new policy-making.
In her first move as DESNZ Secretary, Fahnbulleh was able to announce a one year pause to VAT on domestic energy bills. Affordability will likely remain integral to DESNZ policymaking.
Her historical stance supporting the creation of a green economy, delivering a fair transition for communities, and addressing the climate crisis, also suggests she is unlikely to deviate much from Ed Miliband’s core net zero messaging or concerns for climate change at both the domestic and international level.
A question remains over oil and gas policy, however. While a minister in Starmer’s Government, Fahnbulleh defended the Government’s Clean Power 2030 mission and attributed historically high energy bills to the UK’s continued reliance on fossil fuels. However, as an MP and minister she has not spoken specifically about the North Sea or oil and gas licensing in the House. While leading the NEF, she supported an end to new licensing.
The Burnham team has left open the possibility of a change in policy on North Sea oil and gas, and Fahnbulleh herself has said since her appointment as DESNZ Secretary that “it is about pragmatism.” Yet, she has not made any clear indication that a fundamental change in policy should be expected.
Fahnbulleh’s principles are quite clear. But, with the limited information available on Burnham’s plans for energy – due to be fleshed out at the latest in the anticipated 10 year Plan for Britain – there are two big questions that will hang over the early days of her tenure:
- What does putting “life’s essentials back under stronger public control” mean for the energy sector and energy consumers?
- What will the Government do in relation to North Sea oil and gas licensing?