Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has appointed Grant Shapps as the new energy and net zero secretary in a shake-up of UK government departments.

The former department which covered business and energy has been broken up as part of the reorganisation.

Greg Hands has replaced Nadhim Zahawi after the former Tory party chairman was sacked over his tax affairs.

A promotion also comes for Lucy Frazer who will head a streamlined department of culture, media, and sport.

The government said the new Department for Energy Security and Net Zero will be “tasked with securing our long-term energy supply, bringing down bills and halving inflation”.

The soaring cost of energy bills – partly driven by the war in Ukraine – is one of the key factors hampering the UK economy, which Mr Sunak has pledged to grow.

Meanwhile, Mr Sunak’s changes see business and trade merged in one department, headed by Kemi Badenoch, and the creation of a new department focused on science, innovation and technology, led by Michelle Donelan.

The government says its new Department for Science, Innovation and Technology will drive innovation and create new and better-paid jobs.

The Department for Business and Trade – incorporating the former Department for International Trade – will “support growth by backing British businesses at home and abroad, promoting investment and championing free trade”.

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