Kendall, Naryan and Murray have all been brought in after a ministerial rejig that saw only Lord Patrick Vallance remain in place, while all around him has changed or moved
The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology has conducted a near-complete revamp of its ministerial line-up, with four leaders departing and three new appointments made.
As part a sweeping reshuffle implemented by prime minister Keir Starmer, all but one of the incumbent ministers at DSIT have been moved to a new post or removed from government.
Secretary of state Peter Kyle has moved to the same role at the Department for Business and Trade – where Chris Bryant, formerly data protection and telecoms minister, has also been deployed.
Digital economy and online safety minister Baroness Maggie Jones has been removed from her post. Also relieved of her duties is Feryal Clark – the MP for Enfield North who, since her appointment in summer 2024 as minister for digital and government and artificial intelligence, has been a prominent spokesperson for this administration’s transformation ambitions, including its major shake-up of the Government Digital Service.
The only minister to both begin and end last week in post at DSIT is Lord Patrick Vallance, the minister for science, research and innovation – who, prior to being named as a Labour peer, formerly held the civil service role as government’s chief scientific adviser.
Replacing Kyle as DSIT secretary is Liz Kendall (pictured above), who has been redeployed from her previous role as work and pensions secretary.
Also joining DSIT in junior ministerial roles are Ian Murray, who was previously secretary of state for Scotland, and Kanishka Narayan – who was first elected as an MP in the 2024 general election, when he won the Vale of Glamorgan seat from long-standing Conservative incumbent Alun Cairns.
The precise roles and ministerial duties of Murray and Narayan – and whether their posts will be direct replacements for those vacated by Clark, Jones, and Bryant – are yet to be confirmed. His updated GOV.UK profile does reveal, however, that Bryant’s posting will be split between DSIT and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.
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In the meantime, the incoming ministers’ new boss Kendall told a gathering of officials at DSIT’s London headquarters that “I cannot tell you how thrilled I am to be here, and to have been given the opportunity and honour to work with all of you”.
She added: “I know from my good friend Peter Kyle, former secretary of state, the incredible potential here, your huge determination to change people’s lives for the better, and I really believe this department can help build the future for people in every part of the country, no matter what their background – and who could possibly want a better job than that?”
In a post on X, the departing Clark said that “it has been a privilege to serve as minister for AI and digital government”.
“Over the past year, I’ve been proud to help position the UK as a global leader in Al and digital transformation,” she said. “From launching the Blueprint for Modern Digital Government, to publishing the AI Opportunities Action Plan and beginning delivery through the compute roadmap, to publishing the AI Playbook and opening the Spärck AI Scholarships, we have laid strong foundations for the UK’s digital and AI-enabled future. My personal highlight has been establishing the Local Government Digital and AI Unit – a new centre of expertise to give councils the tools and knowledge they need to harness innovation for better local services.”
Clark added: “I am hugely grateful to the brilliant civil servants, industry leaders and partners who made this work possible. While my ministerial role concludes, I remain committed to advancing the responsible use of technology to improve services, support growth and strengthen the UK’s digital future.”
