|} John Major was Leader of the Conservative Party and Leader of the Opposition from 2 May 1997, following his defeat at the 1997 general election, until 19 June 1997, when William Hague was elected to succeed him. Following the defeat, Major announced his resignation as leader. But, for logistical reasons, a new leader could not be elected for several weeks. In the intervening period, Major appointed an interim Shadow Cabinet.
The Shadow Cabinet was based on Major's final Cabinet. However, as seven Cabinet Ministers had lost their seats in the general election and another had not contested his seat, there were several vacancies. These were largely filled by either Major himself or by a relevant minister in the outgoing Cabinet. The position of Shadow Secretary of State for Scotland was not filled as the Conservatives had lost all their Scottish MPs in the election. Michael Howard (Shadow Home Secretary) and William Hague (Shadow Wales Secretary) were given joint responsibility for constitutional matters, including the brief to handle the Scottish and Welsh devolution legislation.
Shadow Cabinet list PortfolioShadow Minister Leader of Her Majesty's Most Loyal OppositionLeader of the Conservative PartyShadow Foreign SecretaryShadow Secretary of State for Defence John Major Deputy Leader of the OppositionShadow Chancellor of the Duchy of LancasterShadow Secretary of State for Trade and Industry Michael Heseltine Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer Kenneth Clarke Shadow Home SecretaryShadow Minister with special interest in constitutional matters Michael Howard Shadow Secretary of State for Health Stephen Dorrell Shadow Secretary of State for Education and Employment Gillian Shephard Shadow Secretary of State for Social Security Peter Lilley Shadow Secretary of State for Transport Sir George Young Shadow Secretary of State for WalesShadow Minister with special interest in constitutional matters William Hague Shadow Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food Douglas Hogg Shadow Lord Chancellor James Mackay, Lord Mackay of Clashfern Shadow Secretary of State for the Environment John Gummer Shadow Secretary of State for National Heritage Virginia Bottomley Leader of the Opposition in the House of Lords Viscount Cranborne Chairman of the Conservative Party Brian Mawhinney Shadow Leader of the House of Commons Opposition Chief Whip Alastair Goodlad Changes from final Cabinet
Malcolm Rifkind (Foreign Secretary) lost his seat and was replaced by Major himself, who had previously been Foreign Secretary in 1989. Michael Portillo (Defence Secretary) lost his seat and was replaced by Major himself Roger Freeman (Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster) lost his seat and was replaced by Deputy leader Michael Heseltine. Ian Lang (Secretary of State for Trade and Industry) lost his seat and was replaced by Heseltine, who had previously held the role between 1992 and 1995. Tony Newton (Leader of the House of Commons) lost his seat and was replaced by Chief Whip Alastair Goodlad.
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