Cabinet reshuffle: Chris Heaton-Harris re-appointed as Northern Ireland Secretary

Mr Sunak’s reshuffling of the Cabinet was continuing on Tuesday evening after many of Liz Truss's ministers resigned or were sacked.

Mr Heaton-Harris, the Conservative MP for Daventry, was appointed NI Secretary by former PM Liz Truss on September 6, 2022.

Prior to becoming Tory Chief Whip in February he served as Minister of State at the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office and Minister of State at the Department for Transport.

As Rishi Sunak continues his Cabinet reshuffle, the PA news agency looks at some of the incomings and departures we have seen so far:

Incomings

Jeremy Hunt – Chancellor of the Exchequer

Jeremy Hunt will stay as Chancellor of the Exchequer after being appointed by former prime minister Liz Truss following the sacking of Kwasi Kwarteng.

Suella Braverman – Home Secretary

Mr Sunak has appointed Suella Braverman as Home Secretary less than a week after she was out of Liz Truss’s government over a breach of the ministerial code.

Ms Braverman’s backing for Mr Sunak was a key sign that the right wing of the Conservative Party was turning towards the former chancellor.

Dominic Raab – Justice Secretary and Deputy Prime Minister

Dominic Raab has once again been appointed as Deputy Prime Minister and Justice Secretary.

Mr Raab was rewarded for his loyalty to Mr Sunak with a return to frontline politics after he was sent packing as a high-profile casualty of Ms Truss’s cabinet reshuffle.

Penny Mordaunt – Leader of the House of Commons

Penny Mordaunt, the two-time Tory leadership contender, will remain in her post as Leader of the House of Commons.

Ms Mordaunt backed out of the most recent leadership contest on Monday paving the way for Mr Sunak to become PM unchallenged.

Michael Gove – Levelling Up Secretary

Michael Gove has returned to the Cabinet as Levelling Up Secretary after being dramatically sacked by Boris Johnson in July.

James Cleverly – Foreign Secretary

James Cleverly has been re-appointed as Foreign Secretary despite being an old ally of Mr Johnson and staunch backer of Liz Truss.

Mr Cleverly backed Mr Sunak in the most recent leadership contest, saying he was the candidate with “most experience” at the top of Government.

Gillian Keegan – Education Secretary

Gillian Keegan became the fifth Education Secretary in just under four months as part of the reshuffle.

Ben Wallace – Defence Secretary

Ben Wallace will remain as Defence Secretary after overseeing the UK’s efforts in support of Ukraine.

Grant Shapps – Business Secretary

Grant Shapps was appointed Business Secretary less than a week after replacing Ms Braverman as Home Secretary.

Mr Shapps was a loyal backer of Mr Sunak in both of the recent leadership contests.

Simon Hart – Chief Whip

Simon Hart was brought in as Chief Whip to restore party discipline, with Mr Sunak having warned the party: “Unite or die.”

Nadhim Zahawi – Minister without portfolio and Conservative Party Chair

Nadhim Zahawi initially announced he would be backing Mr Johnson to return as PM, before switching allegiance to Mr Sunak on the same day after the former leader said he would not be entering the contest.

Oliver Dowden – Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster

Oliver Dowden previously backed Mr Sunak in the race to replace Mr Johnson as leader before reiterating his support in the most recent contest.

Kemi Badenoch – International Trade Secretary

Kemi Badenoch returned as International Trade Secretary and was also handed the role of minister for women and equalities.

Steve Barclay – Health Secretary

Loyal Sunak backer Steve Barclay replaced Therese Coffey as Health Secretary as part of the reshuffle.

Therese Coffey – Environment Secretary

Appointed as health secretary in Ms Truss’s reshuffle, Therese Coffey was demoted to the role of Environment Secretary in Mr Sunak’s Government.

Ms Coffey was one of Ms Truss’s closest friends in Westminster.

Outgoings

Jacob Rees-Mogg – Business secretary

Boris Johnson ally Jacob Rees-Mogg quit as business secretary after conceding he would not get a job in Rishi Sunak’s Cabinet despite recanting his claim that Rishi Sunak is a “socialist”.

Ranil Jayawardena – Secretary for environment, food and rural affairs

Ranil Jayawardena was appointed environment secretary in September after previously serving as Minister for International Trade.

Sir Jake Berry – Conservative Party chairman

The outgoing Conservative Party Chairman, who was a champion of former prime minister Mr Johnson’s levelling-up agenda, was despatched as Tory Party chairman.

Robert Buckland – Secretary of state for Wales

The outgoing Wales secretary was the first cabinet minister to switch to Liz Truss from Rishi Sunak in the previous leadership election.

Kit Malthouse – Education secretary

Kit Malthouse, who was a deputy under Mr Johnson when he was London mayor, announced his departure as education secretary.

Simon Clarke – Levelling-up secretary

Simon Clarke, who was chief secretary to the Treasury under Rishi Sunak when he was chancellor, indicated he is out of the role of levelling-up secretary.

Chloe Smith – Secretary of state for the Department of Work and Pensions

Chloe Smith is no longer DWP secretary despite supporting Mr Sunak in the leadership contest.

Wendy Morton – Chief whip

Wendy Morton has revealed she is no longer chief whip and is returning to the backbenches under Rishi Sunak’s new government.

Brandon Lewis – Justice secretary

Brandon Lewis, one of the longest serving cabinet ministers, also announced his return to the backbenches.