Dehenna Davison has resigned as Levelling Up Minister this afternoon, citing health reasons in her letter to Rishi Sunak. Davison had already announced she will stand down at the next election, though she has decided to step back a year or so early owing to chronic migraines:
“Unfortunately, for some time now I have been battling with chronic migraine, which has had a great impact on my ability to carry out the role. Some days I’m fine, but on others it is difficult, if not impossible, to keep up with the demands of ministerial life – and the timing of such days is never predictable. Though I have tried to mitigate, and am grateful to colleagues for their patience at times, I don’t feel it is right to continue in the role. At such a critical time for levelling up, I believe the people of communities like mine, and across the country, deserve a minister who can give the job the energy it needs. I regret that I no longer can. And, as my capacity is currently diminished, it feels right to focus it on my constituents, and on promoting conservatism from the backbenches.”
Davison was the government’s youngest Minister, and only joined the Commons benches in 2019. She’s done the full MP lifecycle in record time…
UPDATE: She’s been replaced by Jacob Young…
Read the full letter below…
“Unfortunately, for some time now I have been battling with chronic migraine, which has had a great impact on my ability to carry out the role. Some days I’m fine, but on others it is difficult, if not impossible, to keep up with the demands of ministerial life – and the timing of such days is never predictable. Though I have tried to mitigate, and am grateful to colleagues for their patience at times, I don’t feel it is right to continue in the role. At such a critical time for levelling up, I believe the people of communities like mine, and across the country, deserve a minister who can give the job the energy it needs. I regret that I no longer can. And, as my capacity is currently diminished, it feels right to focus it on my constituents, and on promoting conservatism from the backbenches.
Serving as Levelling Up Minister has been an immense privilege that I will forever remember. Having the opportunity to play a central role in carrying out the Government’s critical levelling up agenda has been an honour, and I am proud of what we have achieved since I took on the role. Great progress on devolution, handing real power and funding back to local people so they can determine their own destiny. Whether through the pioneering trailblazer devolution deals with Greater Manchester and the West Midlands, or first time deals with Suffolk, Norfolk, the East Midlands, York and North Yorkshire, and, of course, the North East – a part of the country I know we both hold dear. Billions of pounds of levelling up funding allocated to hundreds of critical projects across the country, whether for major regenerative cultural schemes like Eden North, crucial transport projects like the redevelopment of Peterborough station, or saving beloved community assets like Giggs Lane in Bury, I know every pound spent will make a real, tangible difference for local people. And a success story on Freeports, with seven of the eight English Freeports now fully operational, and new Freeports in Scotland and Wales, alongside new investment zones, all of which will generate billions of pounds of investment, thousands of quality jobs, and exciting new opportunities for people in their regions. None of these successes would have been possible without the support of the incredible officials at DLUHC, and of Ministers and officials right across national and local government who have all worked incredibly hard alongside us to ensure the Government’s commitment to levelling up is at the front and centre of all that we do.
As I have limited time left in Parliament, I want to focus my last months on two things. Firstly, doing all I can to deliver on the pledges I made in Bishop Auckland, and ensuring our new candidate has all the support they need to hold the seat. And secondly, the cause I came here to champion – better justice and support for one punch assault victims and their families. Growing up in a tough part of Sheffield, I saw too many talented friends miss out on the success they hoped for because of their postcode, which is why levelling up is so close to my heart. We have made incredible progress already, but there is much more to do, and you will have my wholehearted support both from the backbenches, and once I have left the House.”
