Robert Courts has become the UK’s second shipping minister this year in Boris Johnson’s latest cabinet reshuffle.
His appointment comes after Kelly Tolhurst, who had been appointed to the post as recently as in February, moved to the Local Government Department for a ministerial role.
During her short tenure as shipping minister, Tolhurst led an international virtual summit on the crewing crisis during the coronavirus pandemic in July.
The 13 participating countries, including Norway, Denmark, the Philippines and the UK, agreed on new international measures to open borders for seafarers and increase the number of commercial flights to expedite repatriation efforts.
UK Chamber of Shipping chief executive Bob Sanguinetti praised Tolhurst for her efforts.
“She worked incredibly closely with the industry during Covid-19, ensured freight could continue to flow into the country and understood the plight of seafarers, helping convene an international summit on crew change,” Sanguinetti said in a statement.
“I wish her the very best for her new role and I look forward to working with Robert Courts as we look to take advantage of future opportunities for the UK shipping industry, including tackling climate change and the Covid-19 recovery,” he added.
Courts was appointed on Tuesday as parliamentary under secretary of state at the Department of Transport responsible for maritime, aviation affairs, and security and civil contingencies.
The Conservative member of parliament for Witney first arrived in Westminster in 2016, following a victorious by-election for then-prime minister David Cameron’s old seat.
Courts had served as a parliamentary private secretary to the Foreign Office but quit in July 2018 to protest Theresa May’s Brexit approach.
May eventually resigned as prime minister over the thorny issue last year, before Johnson took over.
According to his personal website, Courts is a member of the Marine Conservation Society and has a great interest in the maritime environment as he enjoys diving.
The former barrister has no other known links to the shipping industry.
