All about that BEIS: Rees-Mogg’s hefty in-tray as winter crisis looms
Jacob Rees-Mogg was named the new Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) following Liz Truss’ cabinet reshuffle last night.
He will take on the BEIS department from Kwasi Kwarteng, who has been named Chancellor.
Rees-Mogg tweeted that it was an “honour” to be appointed Business Secretary.
He said: “As Business Secretary my overriding mission is to deliver affordable and plentiful energy to the British people and to make the economy as efficient, innovative and dynamic as possible. This will be the department for growth.”
To do-list: Secure energy supplies, go green, and boost growth across UK’s flagging economy
The incoming Secretary of State has a hefty in-tray to deal with – with the Government pushing to boost domestic energy generation to ensure the country’s supply security.
This includes decisions over whether to reform planning to boost onshore wind and revive fracking, alongside meeting ambitious targets for offshore wind, solar, nuclear and oil and gas outlined in the energy security strategy.
British households are facing an unprecedented squeeze on living standards, with wholesale costs soaring following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
While there is likely to be a vast support package for households this winter, there are also genuine fears over supply shortages.
This means that despite Rees-Mogg’s call for growth, his first few months in office could involve him scrambling to secure more energy supplies to meet our needs.
Last week, City PM revealed he spoke with oil and gas companies about boosting more supplies from the North Sea.
However, there are questions over whether he can marry this push for more North Sea oil and gas exploration with the Government’s net zero green agenda.
There are also doubts over how seriously Rees-Mogg would take climate change in his new role.
He has previously described the UK’s net zero goals as a “long way off” with a “huge regulatory cost.”
In a 2014 interview with Chat Politics Rees-Mogg argued that society should adapt to climate change rather than seek to prevent it.
The North East Somerset MP said he would “like my constituents to have cheap energy rather more than I would like them to have windmills”.
Rees-Mogg is understood be in favour of fracking for oil and shale gas and could speed up the oil and gas licensing round, which remains in development hell with the Government failing to clarify climate compatibility checkpoint for new exploration projects.
Business background boosts profile
Rees-Mogg’s elitist background is well known within Westminister circles, coming from a wealthy family with a background in media and politics.
His late father William Rees-Mogg was the editor of The Times newspaper for 14 years until 1981, before being made a life peer of the Conservative Party seven years later.
He began his career as an investment banker, with jobs in London and Hong Kong before later co-founding Somerset Capital Management in 2007 with a group of colleagues.
The emerging markets specialist currently manages nearly £7bn in assets for multiple institutions, with bases in London and Singapore.
Rees-Mogg stepped down as chief executive of the asset manager when he was first elected a member of parliament in 2010.