George Eustice has been sacked by Liz Truss as the new prime minister appointed her first cabinet.
He has been replaced with Ranil Jayawardena, who was appointed Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on 6 September. Previously he was Minister for International Trade from May 2020 to September 2022. He was elected as the Conservative MP for North East Hampshire in 2015.
Jayawardena went to his local comprehensive school in north east Hampshire and studied government at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE).
He entered Parliament representing his home constituency in 2015, and was re-elected in 2017 and 2019. Before serving as a minister, he was a member of the International Trade, Home Affairs, Procedure and Arms Export Controls Committees, and had been appointed by the Speaker of the House of Commons to the Chairmens’ Panel.
He was also made Deputy Chairman of the Conservative Party by the Prime Minister. Prior to his election to Parliament, he was a councillor, serving as deputy leader of the Borough of Basingstoke and Deane. He also has wide ranging commercial experience from the pharmaceutical, construction, transport and leisure sectors. He is married with a son and two daughters.