Ed Miliband will take over from Yvette Cooper as foreign secretary in Andy Burnham’s new cabinet.

Miliband has been the MP for Doncaster North since 2005 but has been at the centre of Labour politics for even longer – working for Labour MPs before the 1997 election win and as a special adviser to Gordon Brown when he became chancellor.

Having been in the running to become chancellor, the former Labour leader made headlines as energy secretary in Sir Keir Starmer’s cabinet, grabbing headlines for his championing of net zero policies.

But that passion earned him enemies, most notably Unite the Union boss Sharon Graham, who was angered by what she sees as a failure to protect the declining oil and gas industry.

Speaking outside Downing Street after his appointment by the prime minister, Miliband told the BBC that it was the “honour of my life” to serve as foreign secretary.

And he is not the first Miliband to hold the role: his brother David was foreign secretary for Gordon Brown from 2007 to 2010.

Following Sir Keir’s resignation announcement last month, Miliband said that Labour “must now redouble our efforts to deliver the bold and credible change”.

He is taking over from Yvette Cooper, who became foreign secretary in the reshuffle that followed Angela Raynor’s resignation from the government.

Speaking to the BBC’s political editor Chris Mason as he left No 10 following his appointment, he said: “My parents came here as Jewish refugees fleeing from the Nazis, and for them, Britain provided sanctuary and a beacon of hope in the fight against fascism.”

He added that at a time “when values of democracy, the rule of law and freedom are under threat as never before”, he would “carry that spirit, their spirit, into my work as foreign secretary”.

Miliband has been a divisive figure in British politics, in large part due to his willingness to wear his left wing politics on his sleeve.

He grew up in a politically-aware household – his mother was human rights activist Marion Kozak, and his father the prominent Marxist sociologist Ralph Miliband.

The family lived in Camden and he attended a north London comprehensive school before studying Philosophy, Politics and Economics at Corpus Christi College, Oxford University, followed by a masters in economics from the London School of Economics.