Donelan named education secretary as Johnson fights to survive

Michelle Donelan has been promoted to become education secretary in the Westminster government as Boris Johnson battled to save his premiership.

Ms Donelan, who had held the higher education brief since February 2020, took on the job after Nadhim Zahawi was appointed chancellor of the exchequer.

The pair were the major winners in a Cabinet reshuffle that was forced on Mr Johnson by the resignations of Rishi Sunak as chancellor and Sajid Javid as health secretary in the wake of revelations about what the prime minister knew about allegations against former deputy chief whip Chris Pincher.

Although Ms Donelan’s promotion marks the next step in the Chippenham MP’s rapid rise, inevitably there will be questions about how long Mr Johnson – and what remains of his Cabinet – will remain in post, as his political prospects continued to hang by a thread.

And the reshuffle leaves universities awaiting a new minister at a delicate time, as the government’s campus free speech bill moves through Parliament and as institutions await the outcomes of consultations on the potential introduction of minimum entry requirements and student numbers caps in the English sector.

Nevertheless, Ms Donelan’s more senior position in the Department for Education will mean that few will expect a significant change in the political weather for universities in the short term.

This may not be entirely welcome. Ms Donelan’s promotion came after strident criticism of her by vice-chancellors in Times Higher Education following her letter calling on English universities to consider pulling out of voluntary diversity schemes.

Ms Donelan was accused of promoting “wedge issues” and “culture wars” over universities to enhance her standing within the Conservative Party by throwing “red meat” to backbenchers – a strategy that, if latest events are anything to go by, may have been proved successful.

Yet not all backbenchers appeared impressed with the appointment of Ms Donelan, who had attended Cabinet since last autumn. Telford MP Lucy Allan responded to a tweet confirming the promotion with a single word: “Seriously.”

Mr Zahawi, meanwhile, had spent less than 10 months as education secretary, having been appointed after the sacking of Gavin Williamson in September 2021.

Although several ministerial aides followed Mr Sunak and Mr Javid by resigning, media reports indicated that Kwasi Kwarteng, the business secretary, would remain in post.

Science minister George Freeman had expressed support Mr Johnson in the wake of the confidence vote that the prime minister narrowly survived last month.

chris.havergal@timeshighereducation.com