Theresa Villiers, a former Northern Ireland Secretary, has been appointed Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairsin Boris Johnson’s first Cabinet.

She succeeds Michael Gove, who in his time in the role raised Defra’s profile and set out a post-Brexit vision for UK agriculture, who has left Defra to take up the role of Cabinet Secretary, including a specific remit for no deal Brexit planning.

Mrs Villiers, a former MEP and MP for Chipping Barnet in London since 2005, was Northern Ireland Secretary between 2012 and 2016. She campaigned strongly for Brexit in 2016.

She has campaigned on animal welfare issues, including supporting CIWF’s campaign to ‘End the cage’ and ending live exports. She is a supporter of the Conservative Animal Welfare Foundation.