Home Office
Headquarters at 2 Marsham Street, Westminster | |
| Department overview | |
|---|---|
| Formed | 27 March 1782 |
| Preceding Department | |
| Jurisdiction | Government of the United Kingdom |
| Headquarters | 2 Marsham Street, London, SW1P 4DF |
| Annual budget | £20.3 billion (2022–2023) |
| Secretary of State responsible | |
| Department executives |
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| Website | gov |
The Home Office (HO), also known (especially in official papers and when referred to in Parliament) as the Home Department, is the United Kingdom's interior ministry. It is responsible for public safety and policing, border security, immigration, passports, and civil registration.
Agencies under its purview include police in England and Wales, Border Force, the Visas and Immigration authority, and the Security Service (MI5). It also manage policy on drugs, counterterrorism, and immigration. It was formerly responsible for His Majesty's Prison Service and the National Probation Service, but these have been transferred to the Ministry of Justice.
The Cabinet minister responsible for the department is the home secretary, a post considered one of the Great Offices of State; it has been held by Yvette Cooper since July 2024. The Home Office is managed from day to day by a civil servant, the permanent under-secretary of state of the Home Office.
The expenditure, administration, and policy of the Home Office are scrutinised by the Home Affairs Select Committee.