Article Dated: 07 May 2005

Changes to the "Machinery of Government" have been announced following Labour's election for a third term.

The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) is to be renamed the Department for Productivity, Energy and Industry. There has been much debate about the future role of the DTI in recent months. The Government announced that it believed it still had an important role to play and will be refocussed and reinvigorated to play a greater role on productivity, working closely with the Treasury on this agenda.

The Minister of State will be the Rt Hon Alan Johnson MP who has in the past been the Industry Minister before moving to the Education department and more recently Works and Pensions.

To reflect a significant increase in the workload of the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister , a Minister for Communities and Local Government will be appointed of Cabinet rank. This strengthening of the Ministerial team will also allow the Deputy Prime Minister, Mr John Prescott, to play a wider role on cross departmental issues. He will continue to stand in for the Prime Minister as appropriate. He will also chair a number of senior Cabinet Committees. Mr Prescott will have a diplomatic role, as now, representing the UK abroad and he will have a formal role in promoting the interests of the North across Government.

The full list of Cabinet members announced by Her Majesty is as follows:

Prime Minister, First Lord of the Treasury and Minister for the Civil Service, The Rt Hon Tony Blair MP

Deputy Prime Minister and First Secretary of State, The Rt Hon John Prescott MP

Chancellor of the Exchequer, The Rt Hon Gordon Brown MP

Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, The Rt Hon Jack Straw MP

Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, The Rt Hon David Blunkett MP

Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, The Rt Hon Margaret Beckett MP

Secretary of State for Transport, and Secretary of State for Scotland, The Rt Hon Alistair Darling MP

Secretary of State for Defence, The Rt Hon Dr John Reid MP

Lord Privy Seal and Leader of the House of Commons, The Rt Hon Geoff Hoon MP

Secretary of State for Health, The Rt Hon Patricia Hewitt MP

Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, The Rt Hon Tessa Jowell MP

Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury and Chief Whip, The Rt Hon Hilary Armstrong MP

Secretary of State for the Home Department, The Rt Hon Charles Clarke MP

Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, and Secretary of State for Wales, The Rt Hon Peter Hain MP

Minister without Portfolio, The Rt Hon Ian McCartney MP

Leader of the House of Lords and Lord President of the Council, The Rt Hon Baroness Amos of Brondesbury

Secretary of State for Constitutional Affairs and Lord Chancellor, The Rt Hon Lord Falconer of Thoroton QC

Secretary of State for International Development, The Rt Hon Hilary Benn MP

Secretary of State for Productivity, Energy and Industry, The Rt Hon Alan Johnson MP

Secretary of State for Education and Skills, The Rt Hon Ruth Kelly MP

Minister of Communities and Local Government, The Rt Hon David Miliband MP

Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster (Minister for the Cabinet Office), The Rt Hon John Hutton MP

Chief Secretary to the Treasury, The Rt Hon Des Browne MP

Also attending Cabinet: Lords Chief Whip and Captain of the Gentlemen at Arms, The Rt Hon Lord Grocott of Telford

Attorney General, The Rt Hon Lord Goldsmith of Allerton QC

Minister of State for Europe in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Douglas Alexander MP