THERESA Villiers is the new Environment Secretary, replacing Michael Gove in Boris Johnson’s new cabinet.
Here’s everything you need to know about the Conservative MP.
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WHO IS THERESA VILLIERS?
Theresa Villiers is a Jewish Conservative MP serving as Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.
She was born in Norfolk in 1968 and has been the MP for Chipping Barnet for four years.
A former barrister, Villiers studied law at the University of Bristol, graduating with a first class honours degree.
She then went on to gain a Bachelor of Civil Law postgraduate degree from Oxford.
In 2005, Villiers was promoted to the Shadow Cabinet by David Cameron after just seven months in the UK Parliament, as Shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury.
In 2007 she became Shadow Secretary of State for Transport.
Under the Coalition government in 2010, she was appointed to the Privy Council and became Minister of State for Transport.
Villiers was appointed to the Cabinet as Secretary of State for Northern Ireland from 2012 to 2016.
WHAT IS THERESA VILLIERS’ STANCE ON BREXIT?
Villiers is a Euroceptic MP, meaning she is opposed to Britain remaining in the EU.
Villiers is a pro-Brexit MP, a is the trend with Johnson’s cabinet.
WHAT ARE THERESA VILLIERS’ POLITIAL OPINIONS?
Villiers is a vice-president and a member of of of Conservative Friends of Israel and campaigns against anti-antisemitism.
Since September 2008, Villiers has dedicated a considerable proportion of her public announcements to aviation policy, specifically the expansion of airports in the South East of England. Villiers underlined that despite differences of opinion, the Coalition government’s policy was opposed to a third runway at Heathrow airport and is against Boris Johnson’s proposal for a new London airport.
Villiers has publicly spoken about her support for the hunting ban.
Villiers is pro-fracking and voted against a bill to set a target for the amount of carbon dioxide emissions and other greenhouse gases the UK produced.
WHAT IS HER ROLE IN THE CABINET?
Theresa Villiers’ official title is the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.
The Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs covers issues such as climate change, UK fishing and seafood industries, farming, flooding and bringing food, animals and plants to the UK from abroad.
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