London, Leeds & Exeter
Thu 12th Jan 2017
Jo Johnson appointed as new UK IP minister
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Minister for Universities, Science, Research and Innovation, Jo Johnson, has been announced as the new intellectual property minister for the UK. Johnson takes over from Baroness Neville-Rolfe who was appointed as Commercial Secretary to the Treasury before Christmas.
Jo Johnson, brother of foreign secretary Boris Johnson, has been the MP for Orpington since May 2010. He has a number of Cabinet roles before being appointed Minister of State for Universities, Science, Research and Innovation in July 2016. Before venturing into politics, Johnson was an associate editor of the Financial Times and head of the Lex Column.
When appearing before the Science and Technology Committee on 11 January, Johnson was faced with questions on the Unified Patent Court. Johnson confirmed to the committee that the Unified Patent Court is not an EU institution and that the government’s intention is to ensure the UK remains in the system after leaving the European Union.
This briefing is for general information purposes only and should not be used as a substitute for legal advice relating to your particular circumstances. We can discuss specific issues and facts on an individual basis and answer any questions you receive from others about Brexit. Please note that the law may have changed since the day this was first published in January 2017.
