Prime Minister Boris Johnson carried out a reshuffle of his cabinet earlier this month. This is the second major reshuffle since Boris became leader of the Conservative Party, the first one was February 2020.

Berwick-upon-Tweed MP Anne-Marie Trevelyan has been asked to re-join the Cabinet as Secretary of State for International Trade and President of the Board of Trade.

She will be leading the Department in its efforts to strike new free trade agreements and promote UK exports overseas, as well as managing the development of freeports across Britain, maintaining the current trade agreements with other countries and having overall responsibility for the business of the department, including the running of the department and its finances.

Anne-Marie Trevelyan MP said, “It is a real honour to be asked to serve in this way, and I am especially pleased that Northumberland has an MP at the Cabinet table once more. It is so important that local voices are represented at all levels of Government, so I am thrilled to be able to take on this role.”

“As we focus on our agenda to level up the nation, global trade and investment will be more important than ever, especially here in the north east.”

“Some of you may recall that one of the reasons I supported leaving the EU was to maximise the potential of the UK as a global trading nation once more, so it is an honour to be able to drive this vital agenda for our newly-outward facing nation.”

Tynedale and Ponteland MP Guy Opperman has been reappointed as Minister for Pensions and Financial Inclusion in the latest Government reshuffle.

Pensions are a key part of the Government’s strategy to finance a transition to Net Zero carbon emissions. In 2019, the Government legislated for Environmental, Social and Governance regulations (ESG), and the Pensions Schemes Act which has recently passed Parliament has gone further requiring pensions funds to tell their members how they are helping the transition to Net Zero.

The news comes at a crucial time ahead of the UK hosting the global COP26 Summit in Glasgow to discuss the world tackling climate change.

Guy Opperman MP said: “I was very pleased to be reappointed by the Prime Minister as Minister for Pensions and Financial Inclusion. Representing the people of Tynedale and Ponteland will always be my priority but I look forward to continuing the work deliver safer, better and greener pensions across the UK, and help us get to net-zero.”

Blyth Valley MP Ian Levy has been asked to become a Private Parliamentary Secretary to the Cabinet Office.

A Private Parliamentary Secretary (PPS) is appointed by a Minister to be their assistant. They are selected from backbench MPs as the ‘eyes and ears’ of the Minister in the House of Commons. They often advise the Minister on the state of parliamentary or party opinion, and act as a two-way channel of communication between the Minister and backbench MPs. It is useful for a MP to become a PPS to gain experience of working in government.

Ian Levy MP said, “It is an unpaid role which will run alongside my current position and will give me an insight into the inner workings of Government which can only be positive for Blyth Valley.”

There were many other notable moves in the reshuffle which included Liz Truss becoming the foreign secretary, our first woman in that role; Nadhim Zahawi is now the education secretary; and Nadine Dorries has stepped up to the culture secretary. To see the full list of Ministerial appointments across the departments, click here: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/ministerial-appointments-september-2…