Labour shadow cabinet announced

Newly elected Labour leader Ed Miliband signalled he would take his time finalising the line-up of his opposition team with no formal appointments expected until tomorrow morning.

Yvette Cooper looks set to take on the Treasury portfolio after party sources confirmed she had topped the ballot. Her husband and former Labour leadership candidate, Ed Balls, came in a creditable third place behind former housing minister John Healey.

The married couple are both thought to be vying for the coveted shadow chancellor role.

Other figures successful in the secret ballot of Labour’s Parliamentary Party include former Cabinet ministers Alan Johnson, Andy Burnham and Jim Murphy, along with Mr Miliband’s leadership campaign manager Sadiq Khan.

But there were also losers – such as ex-Welsh Secretary Peter Hain, former Culture Secretary Ben Bradshaw and ex-Northern Ireland Secretary Shaun Woodward – who did not make the 19-strong list.

And Diane Abbott, who stood against Mr Miliband in the leadership contest, also missed out.

Some 49 MPs had put themselves forward for the election, after the departure of big beasts such as defeated leadership candidate David Miliband left opportunities for fresh faces. Lord Mandelson, Alistair Darling, Jack Straw and Bob Ainsworth have also retired from frontline politics after long careers in government.

Under Labour rules, its MPs vote to decide who should be in the shadow cabinet when the party is in opposition. A minimum quota of six women was imposed as part of efforts to promote equality.

The party overshot that figure, returning eight in total – including Caroline Flint, who quit Gordon Brown’s government in 2008 complaining that female ministers were being treated as “window dressing”.

Sisters Angela and Maria Eagle have been promoted to the top team, as have Meg Hillier and Ann McKechin. Ex-Cabinet Office minister Tessa Jowell retains her status, while Mary Creagh enters the shadow cabinet despite never having served on the front bench.

Rosie Winterton had already been appointed shadow chief whip after being nominated unopposed.

Maria Eagle told BBC News: “I think the fact that eight women have been elected shows that the Parliamentary Labour Party want a balance in terms of gender.

“They’ve noticed that the Government is gender-blind, it’s hitting women very hard.”

Labour shadow cabinet in full
Here is the full list of members of Labour's new shadow cabinet elected by the parliamentary party:
- Douglas Alexander
- Ed Balls
- Hilary Benn
- Andy Burnham
- Liam Byrne
- Yvette Cooper
- Mary Creagh
- John Denham
- Angela Eagle
- Maria Eagle
- Caroline Flint
- John Healey
- Meg Hillier
- Alan Johnson
- Tessa Jowell
- Sadiq Khan
- Ivan Lewis
- Ann McKechin
- Jim Murphy