Fiona Twycross has been appointed as the UK’s gambling minister in a reshuffle of roles at the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) following Labour’s victory in this month’s general election.
The move gives greater prominence to the gambling sector by appointing a dedicated minister for the sector.
Now a member of the House of Lords, Baroness Twycross sat on the London Assembly from 2012 to 2020 and was London’s first deputy mayor for fire and resilience under Sadiq Khan. Before entering politics, Twycross worked for Diabetes UK. She studied Scandinavian studies at the University of Edinburgh and has a PhD in modern Nordic literature. She later studied public policy and governance at Birkbeck, University of London.
The announcement represents an early role reshuffle at the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, creating a role specifically for gambling.
Stephanie Peacock, the Labour MP for Barnsley South, was originally appointed as the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Sport, Gambling and Civil Society and Equalities Minister under the new Secretary of State Lisa Nandy. She was the front-runner to take on the gambling policy role, shadowing Stuart Andrew while Labour was in opposition.
However, Peacock has now been appointed Minister for Sport, Media, Civil Society and Youth, with gambling moving to Twycross alone. Meanwhile, DCMS has been ended by Sir Chris Bryant MP, who has been appointed Minister for Creative Industries, Arts and Tourism.
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