Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
Welsh: Yr Adran Fusnes, Arloesi a Sgiliau
Department overview
Formed5 June 2009
Preceding Department
Dissolved14 July 2016
Superseding Department
JurisdictionUnited Kingdom
Headquarters1, Victoria Street, London
Annual budget£16.5 billion (current) and £1.3 billion (capital) for 2011-12 [1]
Child agencies
Websitewww.gov.uk/bis

The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) was a ministerial department of the Government of the United Kingdom. It was created by the Gordon Brown premiership on 5 June 2009 by the merger of the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills and the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform. It was disbanded by the Theresa May premiership on the creation of the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy on 14 July 2016.[2]

Secretaries of State for Business, Innovation and Skills

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Name Portrait Took office Left office Length of term Political party Prime Minister
The Lord Mandelson 5 June 2009 11 May 2010 11 months and 6 days Labour Gordon Brown
Vince Cable 12 May 2010 12 May 2015 5 years Liberal Democrats David Cameron
(Coalition)
Sajid Javid 12 May 2015 14 July 2016 1 year, 2 months and 3 days Conservative David Cameron
(II)

The Permanent Secretary was Sir Martin Donnelly.

Responsibilities

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Some policies apply to England alone due to devolution, while others are not devolved and therefore apply to other nations of the United Kingdom. The department was responsible for UK Government policy in the following areas:[3]

Devolution

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Economic policy is mostly devolved but several important policy areas are reserved to Westminster. Further and higher education policy is mostly devolved. Reserved and excepted matters are outlined below.

Scotland

Reserved matters:[4]

The Scottish Government Economy and Education Directorates handle devolved economic and further and higher education policy respectively.

Northern Ireland

Reserved matters:[5]

Excepted matter:[6]

The department's main counterparts are:[7]

Wales

Under the Welsh devolution settlement, specific policy areas are transferred to the Welsh Government rather than reserved to Westminster.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Budget 2011 (PDF). London: HM Treasury. 2011. p. 48. Archived from the original (PDF) on 1 August 2011. Retrieved 30 December 2011.
  2. ^ Prime Minister's Office: Changes to the machinery of Government Archived 8 June 2009 at the Wayback Machine
  3. ^ "Department for Business, Innovation and Skills". gov.uk. 12 September 2012. Retrieved 18 July 2016.
  4. ^ "Scotland Act 1998, Schedule 5, Part II". Opsi.gov.uk. Retrieved 4 December 2012.
  5. ^ "Northern Ireland Act 1998, Schedule 3". Opsi.gov.uk. 25 June 1998. Retrieved 4 December 2012.
  6. ^ "Northern Ireland Act 1998, Schedule 2". Opsi.gov.uk. 25 June 1998. Retrieved 4 December 2012.
  7. ^ "Departments (Transfer and Assignment of Functions) Order (Northern Ireland) 1999". Opsi.gov.uk. 5 October 2012. Retrieved 4 December 2012.
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Precursor departments: