The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) was a ministerial department of the

Government of the United Kingdom His Majesty's Government, abbreviated to HM Government or otherwise UK Government, is the central government, central executive authority of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

. It was created by the Gordon Brown premiership on 5 June 2009 by the merger of the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills and the

Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform The Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR) was a Departments of the United Kingdom Government, United Kingdom government department. The department was created on 28 June 2007 on the disbanding of the Department of Trade ...

. It was disbanded by the Theresa May premiership on the creation of the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy on 14 July 2016.

Secretaries of State for Business, Innovation and Skills

The

Permanent Secretary A permanent secretary is the most senior Civil Service (United Kingdom), civil servant of a department or Ministry (government department), ministry charged with running the department or ministry's day-to-day activities. Permanent secretaries are ...

was Sir Martin Donnelly.

Responsibilities

Some policies apply to

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

alone due to

devolution Devolution is the statutory delegation of powers from the central government of a sovereign state to govern at a subnational level, such as a regional or local level. It is a form of administrative decentralization. Devolved territori ...

, while others are not devolved and therefore apply to other nations of the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. The department was responsible for UK Government policy in the following areas: *

business Business is the practice of making one's living or making money by producing or Trade, buying and selling Product (business), products (such as goods and Service (economics), services). It is also "any activity or enterprise entered into for ...

regulation and support *

company law Corporate law (also known as company law or enterprise law) is the body of law governing the rights, relations, and conduct of persons, companies, organizations and businesses. The term refers to the legal practice of law relating to corp ...

competition Competition is a rivalry where two or more parties strive for a common goal which cannot be shared: where one's gain is the other's loss (an example of which is a zero-sum game). Competition can arise between entities such as organisms, indi ...

* consumer affairs *

corporate governance Corporate governance refers to the mechanisms, processes, practices, and relations by which corporations are controlled and operated by their boards of directors, managers, shareholders, and stakeholders. Definitions "Corporate governance" may ...

* employment relations *

export An export in international trade is a good produced in one country that is sold into another country or a service provided in one country for a national or resident of another country. The seller of such goods or the service provider is a ...

licensing * further education *

higher education Tertiary education (higher education, or post-secondary education) is the educational level following the completion of secondary education. The World Bank defines tertiary education as including universities, colleges, and vocational schools ...

innovation Innovation is the practical implementation of ideas that result in the introduction of new goods or service (economics), services or improvement in offering goods or services. ISO TC 279 in the standard ISO 56000:2020 defines innovation as "a n ...

insolvency In accounting, insolvency is the state of being unable to pay the debts, by a person or company ( debtor), at maturity; those in a state of insolvency are said to be ''insolvent''. There are two forms: cash-flow insolvency and balance-sheet i ...

intellectual property Intellectual property (IP) is a category of property that includes intangible creations of the human intellect. There are many types of intellectual property, and some countries recognize more than others. The best-known types are patents, co ...

* outer space * postal affairs * regional and local

economic development In economics, economic development (or economic and social development) is the process by which the economic well-being and quality of life of a nation, region, local community, or an individual are improved according to targeted goals and object ...

science Science is a systematic discipline that builds and organises knowledge in the form of testable hypotheses and predictions about the universe. Modern science is typically divided into twoor threemajor branches: the natural sciences, which stu ...

and

research Research is creative and systematic work undertaken to increase the stock of knowledge. It involves the collection, organization, and analysis of evidence to increase understanding of a topic, characterized by a particular attentiveness to ...

skills A skill is the learned or innate ability Abilities are powers an agent has to perform various Action (philosophy), actions. They include common abilities, like walking, and rare abilities, like performing a double backflip. Abilities are in ...

trade Trade involves the transfer of goods and services from one person or entity to another, often in exchange for money. Economists refer to a system or network that allows trade as a market. Traders generally negotiate through a medium of cr ...

* training

Devolution

Economic policy is mostly devolved but several important policy areas are reserved to

Westminster Westminster is the main settlement of the City of Westminster in Central London, Central London, England. It extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street and has many famous landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Buckingham Palace, ...

. Further and higher education policy is mostly devolved. Reserved and excepted matters are outlined below. Scotland Reserved matters: *

Competition Competition is a rivalry where two or more parties strive for a common goal which cannot be shared: where one's gain is the other's loss (an example of which is a zero-sum game). Competition can arise between entities such as organisms, indi ...

* Customer protection * Import and export control *

Insolvency In accounting, insolvency is the state of being unable to pay the debts, by a person or company ( debtor), at maturity; those in a state of insolvency are said to be ''insolvent''. There are two forms: cash-flow insolvency and balance-sheet i ...

Intellectual property Intellectual property (IP) is a category of property that includes intangible creations of the human intellect. There are many types of intellectual property, and some countries recognize more than others. The best-known types are patents, co ...

* Outer space * Postal services * Product standards, safety and liability * Research councils *

Telecommunications Telecommunication, often used in its plural form or abbreviated as telecom, is the transmission of information over a distance using electronic means, typically through cables, radio waves, or other communication technologies. These means of ...

Time Time is the continuous progression of existence that occurs in an apparently irreversible process, irreversible succession from the past, through the present, and into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequ ...

* Business associations * Weights and measures in relation to goods The Scottish Government

Economy An economy is an area of the Production (economics), production, Distribution (economics), distribution and trade, as well as Consumption (economics), consumption of Goods (economics), goods and Service (economics), services. In general, it is ...

and

Education Education is the transmission of knowledge and skills and the development of character traits. Formal education occurs within a structured institutional framework, such as public schools, following a curriculum. Non-formal education als ...

Directorates handle devolved economic and further and higher education policy respectively. Northern Ireland Reserved matters: * Consumer safety in relation to goods * Import and export controls, external trade *

* Postal services *

Units of measurement A unit of measurement, or unit of measure, is a definite magnitude (mathematics), magnitude of a quantity, defined and adopted by convention or by law, that is used as a standard for measurement of the same kind of quantity. Any other qua ...

Excepted matter: * outer space The department's main counterparts are: * Department of Enterprise, Trade and Investment (general economic policy) * Department for Employment and Learning (employment relations, further and higher education policy) Wales Under the Welsh devolution settlement, specific policy areas are transferred to the

Welsh Government The Welsh Government ( ) is the Executive (government), executive arm of the Welsh devolution, devolved government of Wales. The government consists of Cabinet secretary, cabinet secretaries and Minister of State, ministers. It is led by the F ...

rather than reserved to Westminster.

References

External links

*
bis.gov.uk/ Archived Website
Precursor departments:
Department for Business and Regulatory Reform (BERR) Archived WebsiteDepartment for Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS) Archived Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Department For Business, Innovation And Skills Business in the United Kingdom Business, Innovation and Skills

Government agencies disestablished in 2016 Innovation in the United Kingdom Ministries established in 2009

2009 establishments in the United Kingdom 2016 disestablishments in the United Kingdom

Secretaries of State for Business, Innovation and Skills

Responsibilities

Devolution

See also

References

External links