It was all change at the UK’s Department of Transport (DfT) as Prime Minister David Cameron outlined a major reshuffle.
Simon Burns, Minister of State, had already tendered his resignation so that he could stand for the post of Deputy Speaker of the House of Commons. Simon was responsible for HS2 and had only been at the DfT since September 2012.
Norman Baker, the longest serving member of the Transport team having been in post since May 2010, moved over to the Home Office. As Parliamentary Under Secretary, Norman looked after both rail and tram issues.
The newly-appointed include Baroness Kramer as Minister of State, and Robert Goodwill as Parliamentary Under Secretary.
Susan Kramer was MP for Richmond Park from 2005 until 2010. Her early career was in banking, and she became vice-president of Citibank in Chicago. She is still a director of Infrastructure Capital Partners, a company she set up with her husband to advise on capital projects in central and eastern Europe.
Robert Goodwill is MP for Scarborough and Whitby and has moved across from the Treasury where he was Lord Commissioner.
The two new appointments join Secretary of State Patrick McLoughlin and Parliamentary Under Secretary Stephen Hammond. Both were appointed in September 2012, meaning that no transport minister has been in the job for more than 13 months.
Up to now, Stephen Hammond has primarily looked after roads. However, the new portfolios still have to be announced.
