The Department for Business, Innovation & Skills (BIS) is a ministerial department of the United Kingdom Government created on 5 June 2009 by the merger of the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS) and the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR).[2]
| Department for Business, Innovation and Skills | |
|---|---|
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| Department overview | |
| Formed | June 5, 2009 |
| Jurisdiction | United Kingdom |
| Headquarters | London |
| Annual budget | £16.5 billion (current) & £1.3 billion (capital) for 2011-12 [1] |
| Minister responsible | Vince Cable, Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills |
| Department executive | Martin Donnelly, Permanent Secretary |
| Child agencies | Companies House HM Land Registry Insolvency Service Intellectual Property Office Met Office National Measurement Office Ordnance Survey Skills Funding Agency UK Space Agency UK Trade and Investment (with FCO) |
| Website | |
| www.gov.uk/bis | |
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| This article is part of the series: Politics and government of the United Kingdom |
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Foreign policy
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The Department for Business, Innovation & Skills (BIS) is a ministerial department of the United Kingdom Government created on 5 June 2009 by the merger of the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS) and the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR).[2]
Contents |
Ministers[edit]
The BIS Ministers are as follows:[3]
| Minister | Rank | Portfolio | |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Rt Hon Dr Vincent Cable MP | Secretary of State President of the Board of Trade |
Overall responsibility, business and banking | |
| The Rt Hon David Willetts MP | Minister of State | Universities and science, innovation, space | |
| Michael Fallon MP | Minister of State | Business and enterprise | |
| Matthew Hancock MP | Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (jointly with Department of Education) | Further education, skills and lifelong learning | |
| Lord Green | Minister of State | Trade and investment | |
| Jo Swinson MP | Parliamentary Under Secretary of State | Employment relations, consumer and postal affairs | |
| Lord Younger[4] | Parliamentary Under Secretary of State | Intellectual property | |
| Key | Conservative | |
|---|---|---|
| Liberal Democrat |
Lord Green works jointly between the department and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.[5]
The Permanent Secretary is Martin Donnelly, following the departure of Simon Fraser CMG, on 26 August 2010.
Responsibilities[edit]
The department is responsible for UK Government policy in the following areas:[3]
- business regulation and support
- company law
- competition
- consumer affairs
- corporate governance
- employment relations
- export licensing
- further education
- higher education
- innovation
- insolvency
- intellectual property
- outer space
- postal affairs
- regional and local economic development
- science and research
- skills
- trade
- training
Some policies apply to England alone due to devolution, while others are not devolved and therefore apply to other nations of the United Kingdom.
Devolution[edit]
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:[6]
- telecommunications
- postal services
- intellectual property
- import and export control
- business associations
- insolvency
- competition
- customer protection
- product standards, safety and liability
- weights and measures
- research councils
- outer space
- time
The Scottish Government Economy and Education Directorates handle devolved economic and further and higher education policy respectively.
Northern Ireland
Reserved matters:[7]
- telecommunications
- postal services
- intellectual property
- import and export controls, external trade
- units of measurement
- consumer safety in relation to goods
Excepted matter:[8]
The department's main counterparts are:[9]
- Department of Enterprise, Trade and Investment (general economic policy)
- Department for Employment and Learning (employment relations, further and higher education policy)
Wales
Under the Welsh devolution settlement, specific policy areas are transferred to the Welsh Government rather than reserved to Westminster.
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This section requires expansion. (June 2010) |
References[edit]
- ^ Budget 2011. London: HM Treasury. 2011. p. 48. Retrieved 30 December 2011.
- ^ Prime Minister's Office: Changes to the machinery of Government[dead link]
- ^ a b "Cabinet Office List of Government Departments and Ministers: Department for Business, Innovation and Skills". Cabinetoffice.gov.uk. 2012-09-06. Retrieved 2012-12-04.
- ^ "The Viscount Younger of Leckie appointed as Business Minister". BIS. Retrieved 2013-01-09.
- ^ [1][dead link]
- ^ "Scotland Act 1998, Schedule 5, Part II". Opsi.gov.uk. Retrieved 2012-12-04.
- ^ "Northern Ireland Act 1998, Schedule 3". Opsi.gov.uk. 1998-06-25. Retrieved 2012-12-04.
- ^ "Northern Ireland Act 1998, Schedule 2". Opsi.gov.uk. 1998-06-25. Retrieved 2012-12-04.
- ^ "Departments (Transfer and Assignment of Functions) Order (Northern Ireland) 1999". Opsi.gov.uk. 2012-10-05. Retrieved 2012-12-04.
External links[edit]
Precursor departments:
- Department for Business and Regulatory Reform (BERR) Archived Website
- Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS) Archived Website
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