Former business secretary Hutton is new Make UK chair

He succeeds Dame Judith Hackitt who stepped down after six years in the role, an era which encompassed both the Brexit and lockdown periods.

As John Hutton MP, the new chair previously served as a Cabinet member in both Tony Blair’s and Gordon Brown’s Labour administrations.

Speaking after news of his appointment was made public, Hutton said:

“Having sat at the Cabinet table as business secretary I am acutely aware that Britain’s manufacturing industries have long been one of the most important pillars on which our economy and wider society has been based.

“The excellence, resilience and innovation represented by UK manufacturers has helped shape our history and it will continue to do so, helping to solve the immense societal challenges we face.”

While serving as MP for Barrow and Furness from 1992 to 2010, he held a succession of Government offices beginning in 1998. Gordon Brown appointed Hutton as secretary of state for Business, Enterprise & Regulatory Reform and latterly, defence secrtary. Previously he was Blair’s work and pensions secretary.

After leaving Parliament in 2010 he was made a life peer and went on to become chair of the Nuclear Industries Association between 2012 and 2018 and, most recently, chair of Energy UK.

The new Make UK chair paid tribute to the work of his predecessor Dame Judith, who stated in her departure speech:

“It has been a privilege to represent such a key sector of our economy, especially during the last couple of years when I’ve seen at first hand the vital work Britain’s great manufacturers have done to support the country during the pandemic. I’ve no doubt the organisation and sector can only go from strength to strength under Lord Hutton’s leadership.”