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Prosperity and Work
The Department for Trade and Industry was replaced in Gordon Brown's reshuffle by the new Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR).
The new Department leads work to create the conditions for business success through competitive and flexible markets that create value for businesses, consumers and employees. It drives regulatory reform, and works across Government and with the regions to raise levels of UK productivity.
The Department brings together functions from the former Department of Trade and Industry, including responsibilities for productivity, business relations, energy, competition and consumers, with the Better Regulation Executive (BRE), previously part of the Cabinet Office. The Department leads on making sustainable improvements in the economic performance of the regions. It is jointly responsible, with DfID and the FCO respectively, for trade policy; and trade promotion and inward investment.
The Department is headed by John Hutton, the first Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform, who was previously Secretary of State for Work and Pensions. He will provide a strong voice for business and regulatory reform at Cabinet.
The Department will provide support to the new Business Council for Britain. The Council, made up of senior business leaders, will assist the Government in putting in place the right strategy to promote the long-term health of the UK economy.
The Department will also work closely with the new Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS). DIUS will be responsible for driving forward the Government’s long-term vision to make Britain one of the best places in the world for science, research and innovation, and to deliver the ambition of a world class skills base.