Baroness Andrews and Iain Wright 'leave Government' in DCLG shake-up » Housing » 24dash.com

Junior local government minister Baroness Andrews has left the Government to take up a new "public service" post, Lords deputy chief whip Lord Davies of Oldham has confirmed.

Lady Andrews had been due in the Lords to steer the Business Rate Supplements Bill through its report stage, but opposition frontbenchers drew attention to her absence.

Lord Davies, deputising for her, was pressed by Tory former environment secretary Lord Jenkin of Roding to explain what had happened to Lady Andrews.

Lord Davies replied: "I am in some difficulty because no announcement has been made. Lady Andrews will be fulfilling a role in the public service of great significance, which will in due course be announced.

"It is not clear when the announcement will be made and therefore, to my enormous joy, I was drafted in to deal with the Bill."

Baroness Hamwee, for Liberal Democrats, said later that she had expected to hear that Lady Andrews had "a diplomatic sniffle".

Uncertainty also surrounds the future of junior housing minister Iain Wright (pictured) whose name was conspicuously absent from a list of ministers published by the Government following the Cabinet reshuffle.

No formal announcement has yet been made by the Department for Communities and Local Government on the new ministerial team.

However, the department has confirmed the appointment of John Healey as the new Housing Minister following the resgination of Margaret Beckett.

John Denham has replaced Hazel Blears as Communities Secretary.