Theresa May picks West Midlands MP to become Home Secretary

Sajid Javid has become the first Conservative MP representating a West Midlands constituency to become Home Secretary for nearly 100 years.

The Bromsgrove MP moves across from the Department for Communities and Local Government, where he has been since Theresa May became Prime Minister two years ago.

Sajid Javid MP

He replaces Amber Rudd, who resigned on Sunday night after she “inadvertently misled” MPs over immigration targets. Her department, which was previously led by May, has faced sustained questions about the handling of the citizen status of the Windrush generation.

Javid worked in finance before entering politics, first for Chase Manhattan Bank before spending a decade at Deutsche Bank.

The last Conservative West Midlands MP to be Home Secretary was Oswestry MP William Bridgeman, who served for 15 months in 1922-24 in governments led by Andrew Bonar Law and Stanley Baldwin.

More recently, Redditch MP Jacqui Smith and Birmingham Stechford MP Roy Jenkins have served as Home Secretary in Labour Governments.