DSIT abolished as a standalone department. The three-year-old department, created by Rishi Sunak in 2023, was scrapped . Most of its functions — science, innovation, research funding, and AI adoption — were merged into a new Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade (BIST) led by Jonathan Reynolds . Digital functions, including the Government Digital Service (GDS), were moved to a strengthened Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) under Lisa Nandy .
Liz Kendall and Peter Kyle departed government. Liz Kendall (Science and Tech Secretary, 2025–2026) and Peter Kyle (Business Secretary, 2024–2025, under Starmer) were both confirmed as having left government in the ministerial appointments list published by No. 10 .
Lord Patrick Vallance resigned as Science Minister. Vallance, the former government chief scientific adviser during COVID who later served as Minister for Science, Innovation, Research and Nuclear, resigned effective 22 July 2026 . His departure was seen as a significant loss for the life sciences and R&D community .
The restructuring provoked fierce backlash before and after it was announced:
DSIT abolished as a standalone department. The three-year-old department, created by Rishi Sunak in 2023, was scrapped . Most of its functions — science, innovation, research funding, and AI adoption — were merged into a new Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade (BIST) led by Jonathan Reynolds . Digital functions, including the Government Digital Service (GDS), were moved to a strengthened Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) under Lisa Nandy .
Liz Kendall and Peter Kyle departed government. Liz Kendall (Science and Tech Secretary, 2025–2026) and Peter Kyle (Business Secretary, 2024–2025, under Starmer) were both confirmed as having left government in the ministerial appointments list published by No. 10 .
Lord Patrick Vallance resigned as Science Minister. Vallance, the former government chief scientific adviser during COVID who later served as Minister for Science, Innovation, Research and Nuclear, resigned effective 22 July 2026 . His departure was seen as a significant loss for the life sciences and R&D community .
The restructuring provoked fierce backlash before and after it was announced: