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Johnson given UK IP brief

January 13, 2017

By Colin Mann

Jo Johnson MP, the UK’s Minister of State for Universities, Science, Research and Innovation in the Department for Education, has added Intellectual Property to his portfolio of responsibilities. The role will be shared with the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy.

He takes over from previous incumbent Baroness Lucy Neville-Rolfe, who was appointed Commercial Secretary (Minister of State) at Her Majesty’s Treasury in December 2016, having previously been a Minister of State at the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy since July 2016 following the reallocation of ministerial briefs by new Prime Minister Theresa May.

Although Lord Prior of Brampton was appointed Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy to replace Neville-Rolfe, he was not given the IP brief.

Johnson was appointed Minister of State for Universities, Science, Research and Innovation in July 2016. He was elected the Member of Parliament for Orpington in May 2010 and re-elected in May 2015.

He was head of the Downing Street Policy Unit and served as Minister of State at the Cabinet Office from July 2014 until May 2015. He served as an Assistant Government Whip from September 2012 until July 2014. He also served as Parliamentary Secretary at the Cabinet Office from April 2013 until July 2014.

Johnson – the younger brother of Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson – joined the Financial Times in 1997, after working as an investment banker at Deutsche Bank. He had two foreign postings with them: firstly, as Paris correspondent (2001 to 2005), and then as South Asia Bureau Chief based in New Delhi (2005 to 2008). In 2008 he became an Associate Editor of the Financial Times and Head of the Lex Column.

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