Liz Truss has been made women and equalities minister and Zac Goldsmith promoted to attending cabinet as Boris Johnson conducted a mini-reshuffle on the first day of parliament’s shutdown. Truss was given the portfolio on Tuesday following Amber Rudd’s resignation on Saturday from that role as well as from her seat in cabinet as work and pensions secretary along with the Conservative whip in protest at the direction of Johnson’s Brexit policy. The new equalities minister is a rightwinger and free marketer who was an early backer of Johnson and entered his cabinet as international trade secretary, a role she will continue to hold. Truss voted for same-sex marriage but abstained on a vote to extend those rights to Northern Ireland. Her appointment is not likely to be welcomed by transgender rights campaigners as she backed Mumsnet in a bitter row about whether criticism of transgender activism on the platform should be allowed as part of free speech. As equalities minister, Truss will be responsible for reforms to the Gender Recognition Act begun by Theresa May, which were aimed at allowing transgender people to self-certify their gender without the need for medical assessment. Goldsmith, an environment and development minister, will attend cabinet as a replacement to the prime minister’s brother, Jo Johnson, who resigned citing the pressures of the Brexit situation on his family. His promotion is controversial given his campaign to be Conservative mayor against Labour’s Sadiq Khan which was accused of being racist and Islamophobic by trying to paint him as having links with terrorists and extremists. Other moves include Chris Skidmore becoming a science minister at the departments of education and business and Edward Argar becoming a minister of state at the Department of Health and Social Care. Chris Philp, Rebecca Pow, and Helen Whately were all given junior ministerial roles.
Brexit Prime Minister Boris Johnson has appointed Liz Truss as women and equalities minister, replacing Chris Philip , who resigned from the role, from the cabinet and from the Conservative whip because of Johnson 's Brexit stance. Johnson has also appointed Zac Goldsmith to the cabinet as environment minister, replacing the prime minister's brother Jo Johnson , who also resigned over UK . Meanwhile, Chris Skidmore was appointed science minister, Zac Goldsmith was given the role of minister of state at the Department of Health and Social Care , and Chris Philip , Brexit and Helen Whately were appointed to junior ministerial jobs.