Greg Hands

Long-serving minister steps into role vacated by sacking of Nadhim Zahawi as UK PM reshapes Whitehall.

That, the government said, will be tasked with "turning scientific and technical innovations into practical, applicable solutions to the challenges we face." The new Tory chairman, who will be expected to keep the Conservative grassroots onside and get the party election-ready, has a formidable job ahead of him. The pair's elevation comes as Sunak reorganizes Whitehall in a bid to better meet the government's list of pre-election priorities. The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport loses the digital brief to the new ministry focused on science, innovation and technology. Tory rising star Kemi Badenoch, who previously headed up DIT, will be the new business and trade secretary. prime minister embarked on a sweeping reform of the government machine.

PM also splits Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy into three departments in Whitehall shake-up.

She is due to go on maternity leave in the spring. The Hammersmith and Fulham MP, who was a staunch remainer, takes over the role before May’s local elections – Sunak’s first electoral test since becoming prime minister. However, a Whitehall source said Gove had “discussed machinery of government changes in general” but had never been formally offered the role by Sunak. There were no sackings, with existing ministers moved to lead the new departments. [Michelle Donelan](https://www.theguardian.com/politics/michelle-donelan), who is understood to be retaining oversight of the online harms bill, while Lucy Frazer will be promoted to the slimmed-down Department for Culture, Media and Sport. [Nadhim Zahawi](https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/nadhim-zahawi) as Conservative party chair as he carries out a mini-reshuffle to try to reassert his grip over his divided party and reshape the government to reflect his priorities.

The prime minister has undertaken his first cabinet reshuffle, moving some key players around and creating new departments as he signals that energy, ...

Google blacklisted 19 of his business websites for violating copyright rules in 2012. "The work starts straight away," he added. [Mr Zahawi was sacked](https://news.sky.com/story/nadhim-zahawi-sacked-as-tory-chairman-over-tax-affairs-row-12793431) over the handling of his tax affairs. She stood to replace Mr Johnson in the summer and was popular among the Tory membership, promising to "tell the truth" and advocating "strong but limited government". A committed Brexiteer and seen as being on the right of the party, Ms Badenoch was previously exchequer secretary to the Treasury and keeps her job as equalities minister. The new business and trade secretary has only been the MP for Saffron Walden since 2017 but her background as a law graduate, software engineer and in banking should have prepared her well for the new role. Mr Shapps served as a minister and co-chair under Mr Cameron, while Mr Johnson made him transport secretary and he became the shortest-serving home secretary ever last year, with just six days in the job under Ms Truss before Mr Sunak made him business secretary. He has been the MP for Welwyn Hatfield since 2005, taking the seat off Labour after 15 years of failed attempts to become a councillor and an MP in Manchester and various London constituencies. Mr Hands tweeted a photo of him and the prime minister, both beaming, as he said he was "excited" and it was "an honour" to be asked to be chairman. He has remained as a minister for the most part of the past eight years after first serving in David Cameron's cabinet as chief secretary to the Treasury. New energy security minister Mr Shapps is seen as a safe pair of hands and a popular MP within the Conservative Party, as well as a smooth media operator. Mr Shapps said he was "delighted" to become the first head of the new department and will focus on "securing our long-term energy supply, bringing down bills and thereby helping to halve inflation".

The New York-born politician has held several ministerial positions since becoming an MP in 2005.

He was appointed Minister of State at the Department for International Trade in October 2022. She replaces [Grant Shapps](https://www.standard.co.uk/topic/grant-shapps), who will head up the new Energy Security Department. From 2016 to 2018, he was Minister of State in the Department for International Trade, and then from 2020 until 2021, he was Minister of State for Trade Policy in the Department for International Trade (DIT). Mr Hands was previously a Minister of State at the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy between September 2021 and September 2022. Mr Hands was then elected the Conservative MP for Hammersmith and Fulham in 2005, and for Chelsea and Fulham in 2010. He was elected as a councillor in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham in 1998 and was leader of the Conservative council group from 1999 until 2003.

Greg Hands, MP for Chelsea and Fulham, will take over the role as Conservative Party chairman as Rishi Sunak begins the first reshuffle of his…

He later worked for eight years on trading floors in London and New York. READ MORE: They returned to the UK and he completed his schooling in Amersham.

Greg Hands, who had been trade minister, has replaced sacked Conservative Party chairman Nadhim Zahawi. Lucy Frazer has been appointed Culture Secretary in a ...

The 12th person to be appointed Culture Secretary in the past 13 years, Ms Frazer has been promoted to the slimmed-down Department for Culture, Media and Sport. He has served in a raft of ministerial roles since becoming the Tory MP for Hammersmith and Fulham 18 years ago, including as deputy chief whip and as then-chancellor George Osborne’s chief secretary to the Treasury after the 2015 election. Lucy Frazer has been appointed Culture Secretary in a department which has been shorn of its responsibility for digital technology, but will instead focus on the creative arts and sport.

Former trade minister takes over from Nadhim Zahawi as PM focused on pledges against which he wants premiership to be judged.

[Greg Hands](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2023/02/07/greg-hands-remainer-tasked-securing-tory-victory-next-election/), who was a trade minister, warned before the 2016 referendum that leaving the bloc would mean “fewer jobs, higher prices in our shops and less money for our public services”. George Freeman, the science minister, announced that he would become a minister in the new department. There has also been the creation of a wholly new department, the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology. He has made getting children to study maths to the age of 18 The department had been responsible for digital issues but appears to have lost that brief. Mr Gove was considered for heading up the new science department, but made it clear that he wanted to stay where he was. [a renegotiated Northern Ireland Protocol](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2023/01/30/dont-scrap-powers-overrule-eu-northern-ireland-quick-brexit/). Kemi Badenoch, who had been the international trade secretary, [one of his central education policies](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2023/01/03/rishi-sunak-puts-maths-heart-vision-britain/). [will head that brief](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2023/02/07/sunak-makes-appeal-right-promotion-kemi-badenoch/). [in a mini-reshuffle](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2023/02/07/rishi-sunak-cabinet-reshuffle-latest-news-nicola-sturgeon-hunt/). [reorganised a number of government departments](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2023/02/07/rishi-sunak-cabinet-reshuffle-next-tory-chair-ministers/?li_source=LI&li_medium=liftigniter-onward-journey) as he focused on [the five promises](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2023/01/04/rishi-sunak-new-years-speech-policies-five-prime-minister/) against which he wants his premiership to be judged.

New Tory chairman Greg Hands on Wednesday put his party on an 18-month General Election alert.

He admitted that local elections in May could be “difficult” for the Tories, a sign that the party is unlikely to go for a General Election then or in the following few months. In a potential switch of tactics, Mr Hands also criticised the “Labour party behind Sir Keir”, and sought to portray them as “very much characterised by the people that Jeremy Corbyn put in place”. It seemed to rule out a poll in the final few months of 2024 or in January 2025, the latest possible date for the next General Election to be held.

Greg Hands was promoted to the key role in the PM's mini-reshuffle yesterday, alongside a major overhaul of Whitehall departments.

Fantastic background, former coal miner and actually until, not that long ago, a member of the Labour Party and so he's somebody I think who bring something different to the party and I think he and I will work very well together,' Mr Hands told Times Radio. 'He'll be a great asset to the party. But the important thing is that we do as well as we can and set the platform for a general election next year.' He dismissed suggestions Mr Sunak had struggled to fill the party chairman role, insisting: 'I am not aware of that… He is a man of great integrity. A Redfield & Wilton Strategies poll this week put [Labour](/news/labour/index.html) 26 points ahead, enough for a huge landslide.