Ruth Kelly

Currently in her mid-30s, Ruth Kelly is the youngest Cabinet minister in one of the most high-profile public service jobs.

Having been educated at Oxford University's Queen's College and the LSE where she achieved an MSc in economics, Kelly originally pursued a career in economics, writing on the subject for the Guardian before moving to work at the Bank of England.

1997 saw the Education Secretary elected to Parliament to serve the Bolton West constituency, being promoted within a year to become Parliamentary aide to the then Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Nick Brown. He went on to become the backbencher whose conversion allowed legislation for top-up fees to be passed.

With her background in economics, it was perhaps unsurprising that she saw promotion to the Treasury, being appointed Economic Secretary in 2000 and to the more senior role of Financial Secretary in 2002. Following the departure of Andrew Smith as Work and Pensions Secretary, Kelly got a promotion to the Cabinet Office as deputy to the then Labour Party general election campaign co-ordinator, Alan Milburn.

In December 2004, following David Blunkett's resignation as Home Secretary over the Kimberley Quinn affair, Ruth Kelly was given her first job in Cabinet as Secretary of State for Education and Skills, holding on to the position following Labour's re-election in 2005.

Kelly has faced questions over her suitability for the role of Education Secretary because of her membership of the Catholic organization Opus Dei, which strictly follows the Vatican line on issues like stem cell research and contraception. However, she has enjoyed praise from an unusual quarter: the Conservative MP Boris Johnson, who said of Ruth Kelly, "I admire the way she has managed to be a real person as well as succeeding in politics. She must be identical twins."