Makerfield MP Josh Simons appointed as minister in Prime Minister's reshuffle

The Prime Minister has made several changes to senior and junior ministerial roles following the resignation of Angela Rayner as deputy prime minister, housing secretary and the deputy leader of the Labour Party.

They included appointing Southampton Test MP Satvir Kaur as a cabinet office minister – with Mr Simons serving as parliamentary secretary in her place as she is currently on maternity leave.

He was chosen to represent Makerfield in the July 2024 general election, replacing Yvonne Fovargue when she decided not to stand for re-election.

In a Facebook post, Mr Simons told constituents he had promised to “be your voice in Parliament and fight for working class people in every room I was in”.

He said he had tackled issues such as speeding, anti-social behaviour, Winstanley Hall and Ashton Library, and launched campaigns to get major investment from the Government, including £120m for an east-west link road and £25m for a flood defence scheme following issues on New Year’s Day.

Mr Simons continued: "But I also promised I’d do something nationally: work to make Government and the Labour Party for working class people.

“Today, I was asked to become a minister in the cabinet office – to help change how Government delivers the things that matter to us. This is the heart of where decisions about priorities are made.

“Now, I will bring our towns in Wigan – Hindley Green and Hindley, Abram and Platt Bridge, Ashton and Bryn, Winstanley and Worsley Mesnes, Orrell and Pickley Green – into the heart of Government. To fight for you and for the North in Whitehall.

“As I say to kids when I talk at primary schools, my job is to have you in my heart. You can still reach me in the usual way and I'll see you out and about every week. But now, I want to start changing things on the inside, for you."

Wigan MP Lisa Nandy retained her position as culture secretary in the reshuffle.