Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy is a department of the government of the United Kingdom, which was created by Theresa May on 14 July 2016 following her appointment as Prime Minister, through a merger between the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and Department of Energy and Climate Change.
BEIS brought together responsibility for business, industrial strategy, and science and innovation with energy and climate change policy, merging the functions of the former BIS and DECC.
Ministers
The Ministers in the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy are as follows:Minister | Rank | Portfolio |
The Rt Hon. Alok Sharma MP | Secretary of State | Overall responsibility for the department; developing and delivering a comprehensive industrial strategy and leading the government's relationship with business; ensuring that the country has secure energy supplies that are reliable, affordable and clean; ensuring the UK remains at the leading edge of science, research and innovation; tackling climate change. |
The Rt Hon. Kwasi Kwarteng MP | Minister of State for Business, Energy and Clean Growth | Carbon budgets; green finance; energy efficiency and heat, including fuel poverty; low carbon generation; energy retail markets; oil and gas, including shale gas; security of supply; electricity and gas wholesale markets and networks; international energy; EU energy and climate; energy security, including resilience and emergency planning. |
The Rt Hon. The Lord Grimstone of Boscobel | Minister of State for Investment | covering departmental business in the House of Lords; developing a new investment strategy; promoting investment across all sectors; business investor relations; leading on the strategic relationship management programme cross-Whitehall, including account management of large UK investors; global marketing to attract investment; increasing foreign direct investment and portfolio investment into the UK; promoting and supporting outward direct investment ; Official Development Assistance. |
Amanda Solloway MP | Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Science, Research and Innovation | Science and research; innovation; intellectual property; space; agri-tech; technology. |
Paul Scully MP | Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Small Business, Consumers and Labour Markets | Small business and enterprise ; consumer and competition ; labour markets; postal affairs; retail sector. |
Nadhim Zahawi MP | Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Business and Industry | Industrial Strategy delivery; Sector Deals; sectoral lead: advanced manufacturing, aerospace, automotive, materials, life sciences, professional services, nuclear, infrastructure and construction, rail supply chain, defence, maritime; supply chains; national security and investment; local growth; better regulation and regulatory reform. |
The Rt Hon. The Lord Callanan | Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Climate Change & Corporate Responsibility | EU single market on-going business; EU Structural Funds; Land Registry; Ordnance Survey; international climate change ; climate science and innovation; clean heat; smart meters and smart systems; corporate governance; insolvency. |
In October 2016, Archie Norman was appointed as Lead Non Executive Board Member for the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy.
Responsibilities
The department is responsible for government policy in the following areas:Some policies apply to England alone due to devolution, while others are not devolved and therefore apply to other nations of the United Kingdom.
Devolution
Some economic policies are devolved but many aspects of several important policy areas are reserved to Westminster. Reserved and excepted matters are outlined below.Scotland
Reserved matters:
The Economy Directorate of the Scottish Government handles devolved economic policy.
Northern Ireland
Reserved matters:
- Climate change policy
- Competition
- Consumer protection
- Import and export control
- Export licensing
- Intellectual property
- Nuclear energy
- Postal services
- Product standards, safety and liability
- Research councils
- Science and research
- Telecommunications
- Units of measurement
- Outer space
- Nuclear power
- Department for the Economy