Ipswich MP Ben Gummer has replaced Matthew Hancock as the minister for Cabinet Office, a role which is expected to retain control of reshaping the government’s property portfolio.
Gummer, 38, is the son of Lord Gummer, the widely respected former cabinet minister for planning, housing and construction and long-time contributor to Estates Gazette on property issues.
He had been a junior health minister until his promotion last night, which will include attendance at cabinet meetings.
He told the Ipswich Star: “This came as a total surprise, but it is very exciting and I am looking forward to it enormously.
“In one sense I am quite sorry to be leaving health because we had a good team there and things were starting to happen – but when a call like this comes you have to jump at it.”
Hancock’s new responsibilities are unclear.
The Government Property Unit is reducing the government estate from 800 buildings to fewer than 200 by 2023, shifting power away from Whitehall.
It also hopes to raise £5bn from property sales by 2020, selling everything from unused airfields and barracks to surplus prisons and abandoned labs.
Oversight of the unit was part of Matthew Hancock’s responsibilities when he held the role before yesterday’s cabinet reshuffle, although a cabinet office spokesman today said the responsibilities may change.
From 4 July: 7.4m sq ft of government requirements revealed
From 2010: John Gummer: Property industry must support coalition
From 2014: Ben Gummer MP lobbying hard for faster trains to connect Ipswich to central London
From February: The big government property sell-off continues
The Minister of the Cabinet Office and Paymaster General’s responsibilities also include public sector efficiency and reform and industrial relations in the public sector.
