As reported by the Independent, the new health secretary helped Boris Johnson during the ‘partygate’ scandal
This week, the prime minister’s former chief of staff has been promoted to health secretary as part of a forced mini-reshuffle after the resignations of two high-profile cabinet ministers.
Mr Barclay replaced Sajid Javid, and Nadhim Zahawi took over from Rishi Sunak as chancellor.
Mr Barclay has said it is an “honour” to take on the position. The new health secretary was elected to parliament as MP for North East Cambridgeshire in 2010 after the Conservatives formed a coalition with the Liberal Democrats.
In 2015, he was appointed assistant chief whip at the Treasury and held two other government posts before being promoted to minister of state for health in 2018.
In 2018, Theresa May made Barclay secretary of state for leaving the European Union. This was a role he occupied until 2020 when Boris Johnson appointed him as chief secretary to the Treasury, the position he remained in until September 2021.
He has become one of the prime minister’s most loyal allies and worked closely with Mr Johnson’s premiership during the ‘partygate’ scandal.
In his dual role as chief of staff and a cabinet office minister, Mr Barclay helped to successfully prevent a confidence vote against Mr Johnson’s leadership in January, which was then triggered in June.
Mr Barclay is a qualified solicitor and previously worked as a regulator of the Financial Services Authority and a head of Barclays Bank before entering politics.
Labour mocked Mr Barclay’s appointment, which the party commented as the “shortest-serving health secretary in history”.
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