Government announces new IP Minister
The latest minister with responsibility for intellectual property has been announced as Chris McDonald MP.
Chris McDonald MP was appointed Minister of State (Minister for Science, Innovation and Investment) following the recent government reshuffle brought about after Andy Burnham became Prime Minister.
The former minister with responsibility for intellectual property, Kanishka Narayan MP, has been promoted into a cabinet role as Minister for Artificial Intelligence.
Mr McDonald’s new role will sit across both the Department for Health and Social Care and the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade.
He will oversee the Intellectual Property Office as well as a broad range of other responsibilities including science, UK Research and Innovation and the Met Office.
He was previously Minister for Industry in the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) and the Department for Business and Trade between September 2025 and July 2026.
He was elected as the MP for Stockton North in July 2024.
CITMA President Daniel Hardman-Smart said: “We welcome Mr McDonald to the role and look forward to working with him.
“The UK is a world-leader for the protection of intellectual property, but with ongoing challenges around unusual filing patterns and tribunal delays there is work to be done to maintain this footing.
“Our members play a vital role in the UK’s IP eco-system and in turn the UK economy – I look forward to championing them and discussing other important matters with Mr McDonald in due course.”
Before becoming an MP Mr McDonald spent 20 years working in the steel industry, with a focus on research. In 2008, he became a laboratory manager within the research division of Tata Steel. In 2014 he led the divestment of the Materials Processing Institute from Tata Steel UK, becoming CEO. He is also a Fellow at the Royal Academy of Engineering.
Mr McDonald holds a degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Cambridge and an MBA awarded by the University of Warwick.
Intellectual Property Office CEO Adam Williams said: "I am looking forward to working for Chris McDonald MP as the Minister with responsibility for intellectual property within the newly formed Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade.
"IP is central to the UK’s creative and innovative strengths, helping people and businesses protect ideas, attract investment, and bring new products, services and content to market."
Previous ministers with responsibility for IP:
- Kanishka Narayan MP 2025 - 2026
- Feryal Clark MP 2024-2025
- Viscount Camrose 2023-2024
- George Freeman MP 2022-2023
- Dean Russell MP 2022
- George Freeman MP 2021-2022
- Amanda Solloway MP 2020-2021
- Chris Skidmore MP 2019-2020
- Lord Johnson of Marylebone (Jo Johnson) 2019
- Chris Skidmore MP 2018-2019
- Sam Gyimah 2018
- Lord Johnson of Marylebone (Jo Johnson) 2016-2018
- Baroness Neville-Rolfe 2014-2016
- Viscount Younger of Leckie 2013-2014
- Lord Marland 2012-2013
- Baroness Wilcox 2010-2012