Prime Minister Gordon Brown is in the process of a cabinet reshuffle which has seen John Denham move from Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills to the Department for Communities and Local Government. Denham is one of only a handful of scientifically trained MPs in Parliament, possessing a chemistry degree.
Rumours are circulating that the Department of Innovation, Universities and Skills, created only two years ago, will be dissolved, with responsibility for science and innovation moving to the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR) and universities and skills moving to the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF). Ed Balls remains as Schools Secretary but may be given responsibility for the wider universities and skills agenda, whilst Lord Mandelson would bear ultimate responsibility for science as Secretary of State at BERR.
Hilary Benn will remain as Secretary of State at Defra.