Parliamentary secretary role for Southport MP Moore
SOUTHPORT MP Damien Moore has been handed a new role as Parliamentary Private Secretary (PPS) to the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra)
The announcement came as a number of Northern MPs were handed new roles within the ruling Conservative Party earlier this week.
Mr Moore was first elected in Southport in 2017 and has previously served as PPS to Michael Gove in the Cabinet Office.
The new position is seen as a promotion for the MP, who has been a long-standing supporter of Prime Minister Boris
Johnson.
MPs in PPS roles effectively act as assistants to ministers and serve as a link between those in the top roles and backbench MPs.
It is seen as highly useful for an MP to become a PPS in order to gain experience of working in government.
Although the role is unpaid, Mr Moore must abide by the Ministerial Code while in the role of PPS, meaning he cannot vote against the government and remain in his position.
Other Northern MPs appointed at the same time as Mr Moore were Chris Clarkson (Heywood & Middleton), Jonathan Gullis (Stoke North) and Peter Gibson (Darlington).
Speaking at a Westminster Hall debate, Mr Moore, a member of the recently former Northern Research Group (NRG), backed calls from Rossendale and Darwen MP Jake Berry for the creation of a Northern economic recovery plan to deal with the damage cause by Covid-19.
He said: “We cannot just hope our way out of this crisis and towards a better economic future; we have to plan for that, and we want to be part of that plan.”
When approached about his new role, he told the Southport Visiter: “I’m looking forward to working as Parliamentary Private Secretary (PPS) for the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs.”