“Dominic Johnson CBE was appointed a minister of state jointly in the Department for International Trade and the Cabinet Office on 2 October 2022.”
In a move likely to give further rise to accusations of cronyism, prime minister Liz Truss has given a peerage and job as a senior minister to a Tory party donor, who is also a city business partner of Jacob Rees-Mogg.
The government made the announcement regarding the appointment of Dominic Johnson, who co-founded Somerset Capital Management with Rees-Mogg, on Sunday. He has been appointed as a minister in the Cabinet Office and the Department for International Trade.
The statement read: “Dominic Johnson CBE was appointed a minister of state jointly in the Department for International Trade and the Cabinet Office on 2 October 2022.”
Johnson has given the Tories more than £250,000 and was vice-chair of the Conservative party between 2016 and 2019.
Green Party MP Caroline Lucas condemned the decision, and tweeted: “So Liz Truss has just dished out a peerage and trade minister job to a multi-millionaire Tory donor… who co-founded Jacob Rees-Mogg’s fossil fuel-tied investment fund
“She has absolutely no shame, does she?”
Otto English tweeted: “Truss making Jacob Rees-Mogg’s closest business chum a peer and giving him a ministerial post because he fancies having a go at politics”.
Basit Mahmood is editor of Left Foot Forward
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