Gavin Williamson was appointed the new Minister of Defense of Great Britain after the unexpected resignation of the former head of department Michael Fallon. On Thursday, the media was informed via the office of the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Theresa May.
“The Queen was pleased to approve the appointment of the Honorable Gavin Williamson Minister of Defense,” – said the agency’s interlocutor.
Prior to his appointment as Minister of Defense, the 41-year-old Gavin Williamson was working as a parliamentary organizer and was involved in ensuring party discipline in the House of Commons.
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For the first time, he was elected to parliament in 2010 from South Staffordshire County near Birmingham, and then in 2015, he was re-elected to the House of Commons from the same district.
In the government of David Cameron (2010-2016), he held rather low posts – he was the parliamentary secretary to the deputy minister for Northern Ireland and also served as the minister of transport. Theresa May, who replaced David Cameron at Downing Street in July 2016, appointed Williamson as the parliamentary secretary of the Treasury and the main party parliamentary organizer.
Since 2015, Gavin Williamson was a member of the Privy Council of Great Britain – the body of advisers to Queen Elizabeth II. Last year Gavin Williamson became a Knight of the Order of the British Empire “for political and public service.” Before the referendum on the membership of Britain in the EU, held in June last year, Williamson advocated the preservation of the country’s membership in the European Union.
The 65-year-old Fallon on Wednesday announced his resignation, explaining this step by the mismatch of his own behavior to high standards. The British press had previously accused him that he had behaved improperly in relation to the famous radio personality and columnist Julia Hartley-Brewer 15 years ago.
The Sun newspaper of the UK reported that during the 2002 Tory Party Congress, he put his hand on the leader’s knee. A representative of Fallon said on Tuesday that the politician apologized to the woman for the incident.
