May shakes up DH ministerial team

Health secretary Jeremy Hunt remains in post, as was confirmed on Friday, but the new prime minister has announced a number of changes to the department’s junior ministerial team.

At the weekend Philip Dunne was appointed as minister of state for health, the second ranked position behind Mr Hunt, having previously been minister of state for defence procurement at the Ministry of Defence.

Nicola Blackwood and David Mowat, parliamentary private secretary to Greg Clark, have been appointed parliamentary under-secretaries of state at the DH. Ms Blackwood was previously chair of the science and technology committee, a role she held since June 2015.

Lord Prior retains his role as under-secretary of state.

The incoming trio follow the departure of junior health ministers Jane Ellison and Ben Gummer, who were moved to financial secretary to the Treasury and minister for the Cabinet Office respectively.

Minister for community and social care Alistair Burt has also left the DH, after announcing his resignation from government earlier this month.

Life sciences minister George Freeman has left the DH to chair the prime minister’s policy board. Mr Freeman, who had held the role spanning both the DH and the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills since 2014, said he was “delighted” to be moved into the key policy position.

Mr Freeman’s portfolio included the cancer drugs fund, the NHS digital drive, genomics, life sciences industrial strategy and driving the uptake of new drugs and medical technology.

Full briefs for the new ministers are yet to be announced.