Claire Coutinho, the MP for East Surrey, has been appointed as a minister at the Department for Education.
She was appointed as minister for disabled people just last month, and became an MP in 2019.
She will join the department as a junior minister. Coutinho work at investment bank Merrill Lynch and accounting firm KPMG before being elected to parliament. She’s also served as a special adviser at the Treasury.
She will join Nick Gibb, who FE Week understands will be named schools minister, and Robert Halfon, who is set to be named skills minister.
That means Coutinho is likely to replace Kelly Tolhurst, who was schools and children’s minister.
Tolhurst tweeted that it had ”been a privilege to serve as Minister for Schools & Childhood. I have decided that now more than ever, with the challenges we face I want to focus on supporting & helping the people of Rochester & Strood, representing my constituents & businesses from the backbenches.”
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