For 48 hours, the only clue to the identity of the United Kingdom’s new international development minister, following Labour’s stunning election victory, was a mysterious place card on the Cabinet table on Saturday morning.
The card read “Minister of State (Development)” and behind it was sitting Anneliese Dodds, who had expected to continue as the party’s chair — with responsibilities for internal administration and campaigning — but who, it later turned out, had lost that post.
On Monday, Downing Street confirmed Dodds had taken over the international development brief from Lisa Nandy, who had spent 10 months preparing for the role before being surprisingly promoted to culture secretary on Friday.