Jo Johnson

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Person.png Jo Johnson   Powerbase Sourcewatch WebsiteRdf-entity.pngRdf-icon.png
(politician)
Jo Johnson.jpg
BornJoseph Edmund Johnson
1971-12-23
London, England
Alma materOxford University/Balliol College, INSEAD, Université Libre de Bruxelles
ReligionAnglicanism
Parents • Stanley Johnson
• (father)
• Charlotte Johnson Wahl
• (mother)
Children2
SpouseAmelia Gentleman
Member ofBullingdon Club, Ditchley/Governors, Ditchley/UK, European Council on Foreign Relations, Franco-British Colloque, Königswinter
PartyConservative

Employment.png Minister of State for the Cabinet Office

In office
15 July 2014 - 11 May 2015

Employment.png Director of the Number 10 Policy Unit

In office
25 April 2013 - 21 May 2015

Employment.png Minister of State for Transport

In office
9 January 2018 - 9 November 2018

Employment.png Minister for London

In office
9 January 2018 - 9 November 2018

Employment.png Member of Parliament for Orpington

In office
6 May 2010 - Present

Joseph 'Jo' Johnson (born 23 December 1971) is a British Conservative Party politician, who has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Orpington since the 2010 United Kingdom General Election.[1]

The younger brother of Boris Johnson, Jo Johnson resigned from Theresa May's government on 9 November 2018, citing the failure of the Brexit negotiations to achieve what had been promised during the EU Referendum and his wish to campaign for a new People's Vote.[2]

In 2013 David Cameron made Johnson Director of the Number 10 Policy Unit, and in 2014 Minister of State for the Cabinet Office. Johnson served as Minister for Universities and Science from the 2015 General Election to 2018,[3] and Minister for Transport and Minister for London from the January 2018 cabinet reshuffle to his resignation in November 2018.

Connections

Jo Johnson attended Balliol College, Oxford where he was a member of the Bullingdon Club together with Harry Mount, Nat Rothschild and George Osborne,[4] with whom he remains a close friend.[5][6][7]

Parliamentary career

In 2010, Jo Johnson was selected as the Conservative Party parliamentary candidate for the safe seat of Orpington in the London Borough of Bromley from a shortlist of six contenders.[8] He retained the seat, tripling the Conservative majority of his predecessor John Horam to over 17,000 at the 2010 General Election. His majority increased again in the 2015 General Election to 19,979.[9]

Against the national trend, he increased the Conservative share of the vote in the constituency by 5.5% points to 62.9% at the 2017 General Election, although his majority declined to 19,453. By numerical vote share, Johnson's seat of Orpington is the safest Conservative seat in London.[10]

Downing Street Policy Unit

On 25 April 2013, he was appointed Head of the Number 10 Policy Unit by David Cameron to help develop the 2015 Conservative manifesto.[11]

As a junior Cabinet Office minister, he chaired a newly created Conservative Parliamentary advisory board, known as the Prime Minister's Policy Board, consisting of Tory MPs.[12]

Minister for Universities and Science

On 11 May 2015, it was announced that Johnson had been appointed Minister for Universities and Science at the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS).[13][14] Writing about Johnson’s appointment for Times Higher Education, John Morgan noted:

"Mr Johnson’s reputation as a pro-European is likely to please vice-chancellors, many of whom are concerned by the Tories’ pledge to hold an in-out referendum on EU membership by 2017. Universities UK pointed out that British higher education institutions benefit from around £1.2 billion in European Research Council funding each year."[15]

In this role, Johnson introduced the Higher Education and Research Act 2017, which the Times Higher Education described as the most significant legislation in 25 years. This overhauled the regulatory framework for English universities, replaced the Higher Education Funding Council for England with a new regulator, the Office for Students, and established mechanisms to hold universities more accountable for the quality of teaching and student outcomes.[16] The Act also created a new single national strategic research body, UK Research and Innovation, bringing together the UK's fragmented research funding bodies.[17]

Minister of Transport

On 9 January 2018, Jo Johnson left his role as Minister for Universities and accepted a new position as Minister of Transport and Minister for London.[18]

On 9 November 2018, Johnson resigned his position, citing disillusionment with the government’s Brexit strategy and called for a fresh vote on Brexit with an option to remain. Johnson argued that Britain was "on the brink of the greatest crisis" since World War II and claimed that what was on offer was not "anything like what was promised".[19]

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References

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  2. "Why I cannot support the Government’s proposed Brexit deal"
  3. Jonathan Amos "Jo Johnson is new science minister", BBC News, 11 May 2015
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  6. Elwes, Jay. "Good news for the chancellor".Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css must have content model "Sanitized CSS" for TemplateStyles (current model is "Scribunto").
  7. "Jo Johnson is his own man who is very different to Boris".Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css must have content model "Sanitized CSS" for TemplateStyles (current model is "Scribunto").
  8. "Jo Johnson selected for Orpington after six ballots including a tie". ConservativeHome.Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css must have content model "Sanitized CSS" for TemplateStyles (current model is "Scribunto").
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  11. "Jo Johnson to head Downing Street Policy Unit - GOV.UK". www.number10.gov.uk.Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css must have content model "Sanitized CSS" for TemplateStyles (current model is "Scribunto").
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  13. "Election 2015: Who's Who in David Cameron's new cabinet". BBC News. 11 May 2015. Retrieved 11 May 2015.Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css must have content model "Sanitized CSS" for TemplateStyles (current model is "Scribunto").
  14. "Minister of State for Universities, Science: Jo Johnson". Gov.uk. Retrieved 11 May 2015.Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css must have content model "Sanitized CSS" for TemplateStyles (current model is "Scribunto").
  15. Morgan, John (11 May 2015). "Jo Johnson is new minister covering higher education". Times Higher Education. Retrieved 11 May 2015.Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css must have content model "Sanitized CSS" for TemplateStyles (current model is "Scribunto").
  16. "Higher Education and Research Bill passed by UK parliament". 27 April 2017.Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css must have content model "Sanitized CSS" for TemplateStyles (current model is "Scribunto").
  17. "Science Minister announces new Chief Finance Officer of UK Research and Innovation - UK Research and Innovation". www.ukri.org. Retrieved 19 September 2018.Page Module:Citation/CS1/styles.css must have content model "Sanitized CSS" for TemplateStyles (current model is "Scribunto").
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