Kwasi Kwarteng Becomes Fourth Construction Minister in Two Years

KWASI KWARTENG has become the new Construction Minister. He is the fourth person to hold the post in 21 months.

His predecessor, Nadhim Zahawi has moved on to overseeing the nationwide COVID-19 vaccination programme.

Kwasi Kwarteng, 45, has been the Minister of State at the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy since 2019. He is MP for Spelthorne in Surrey which he has represented since 2010.

Fourth Construction Minister

As business minister, Kwasi Kwarteng’s responsibilities include energy, energy supply and markets, green finance and nuclear. Adding construction to his portfolio suggests the central role of the Green Homes Grant to the ‘Green Recovery’ and construction’s post-Covid bounce back, in government thinking. He has repeatedly voted in favour of HS2 and voted leave in the Brexit referendum.

Kwasi Kwarteng was educated at Eton College and the University of Cambridge where he gained a doctorate in economic history. Before entering politics, he was a financial analyst.

Hannah Vickers, Chief Executive of ACE

Hannah Vickers, Chief Executive of the Association for Consultancy and Engineering (ACE) welcomed the minister’s appointment, saying, “I hope he continues the effective work of his predecessor who engaged constructively with all parts of the industry.

“The next 18 months are almost as crucial, and when we do meet I will stress how our industry can play a key role as a catalyst for recovery, as an enabler for levelling-up and as the designers of a Net Zero future.”

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