Robert Goodwill and David Rutley have left Defra and Zac Goldsmith has arrived. Goldsmith’s role is a joint one at Defra and international Development.
The ministerial team at Defra is now Theresa Villiers (Seccetary of State), George Eustice and Therese Coffey (Ministers of State), Zac Goldsmith (Parliamentary Under Secretary) and Lord Gardiner of Kimble (House of Lords).
The arrival of Goldsmith as a minister robs the Environmental Audit Committee of one of its most effective members but puts an undoubted nature conservationist into a position of power.
It will be interesting to see how Coffey and Goldsmith divide their areas of activity.
Goodwill and Rutley both appear to have left the government and both were Defra ministers for just a few months.
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On radio 4 farming today. Zak Goldsmith is to be minister for animal welfare.