The news comes after it was confirmed that both Secretary of State Elizabeth Truss and minister of state George Eustice, who had worked within the Department prior to the General Election, will continue in their roles. Mr Stewart joins the Department as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State.
A spokeswoman for the Department this morning told letsrecycle.com that the future of former recycling minister Lord de Mauley is still to be confirmed. But, she did confirm that it is likely that Mr Stewart will pick up the portfolio vacated by the outgoing Mr Rogerson, who lost his North Cornwall seat at last week’s General Election.
However, the spokeswoman added that the ministers’ final portfolios have yet to be fully decided, and that there could still be “one or two tweaks” before each of the minister’s role is finalised.
Should Mr Stewart, 42, be chosen as the next minister to take on the recycling brief, one of his major tasks will be ensuring that the UK is equipped to meet its 50% by 2020 recycling target, with the possibility of a looming EU fine should this not be achieved.
Priorities
Recent progress towards the target has stalled and senior figures in the recycling and waste industry have indicated that they will be seeking to communicate urgently with a new minister on this subject – with work on waste crime also to be highlighted (see letsrecycle.com story).
Originally elected to parliament in 2010, Mr Stewart returned the largest ever majority at his Penrith and The Border constituency in 2015, nearly doubling his majority from 11,241 to 19,894.
The Eton-educated MP served as the chair of the Defence Select Committee during the last Parliament, and his appointment to Defra may come as something of a shock to those within the field, who had widely expected that he would pick up a post within the Ministry of Defence.
His parliamentary career has also seen him join the Foreign Affairs Select Committee, chair the All Party Parliamentary group on Local Democracy, chair the All Party Parliamentary Group on Mountain Rescue, and serve as treasurer of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Upland Farming.
According to his personal website he tours his Northern Lakeland constituency on foot whenever possible, and has focused on issues including broadband and mobile technology; on defence and military intervention internationally; on rural and upland farming policy; and on devolving power to local communities across Britain.
Mr Stewart, who has served in the military, has also authored three books – largely detailing his time in the armed forces in Afghanistan and Iraq.
He appears to have engaged little on the subject of waste and recycling to date, but did campaign to have Household Waste Recycling Centres (HWRCs) in his constituency saved from the axe in 2012.
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