After reshuffling his cabinet this morning, Prime Minister Boris Johnson has appointed Alok Shama as Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS), replacing Andrea Leadsom.

Sharma, MP for Reading West and former International Development Secretary, will also serve as chair of the COP26 climate change summit, due to take place in Glasgow this November.

The conference is considered as the most significant gathering on climate change since the Paris Agreement was signed in 2015, and is expected to attract over 30,000 delegates from around the world.