The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) has confirmed the appointment of two new junior ministers.
Labour life peer Baroness Gillian Merron has been appointed as parliamentary under-secretary of state for patient safety, women’s health and mental health.
She will hold responsibilities within these areas, including maternity services, gender identity services, and mental health reform.
She was previously an elected Labour MP from 1997 to 2010, serving almost a year of that as minister for public health in former Prime Minister Gordon Brown’s government from 2009 to 2010.
Labour MP Andrew Gwynne has also been appointed as parliamentary under-secretary of state for public health and prevention. He will hold responsibility for major and long-term conditions, health improvement including diet and obesity, and pandemic preparedness.
Mr Gwynne has been an MP since 2005 and has previously held roles within the shadow cabinet including shadow minister for social care.
It comes after two ministers were confirmed last week, with Karin Smyth and Stephen Kinnock appointed as minister of state for health and minister of state for care respectively.
Ms Smyth was previously a non-executive director of a primary care trust.
Photo credit: Baroness Merron and Andrew Gwynne MP. Images: UK Parliament. Released under Attribution 3.0 Unported (CC BY 3.0) licence
