UK appoints Josh Simons as DSIT Under-Secretary

Downing Street has confirmed that the King has approved Josh Simons MP as a Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT), announced on 9 January 2026. He will also remain a Parliamentary Secretary in the Cabinet Office; Simons has been the MP for Makerfield since 2024, according to GOV.UK. (gov.uk)

Here’s the simple version: Parliamentary Under-Secretaries are the most junior tier of ministers. They help deliver parts of a department’s brief, answer questions in Parliament, and pilot specific policies and laws under the direction of the Secretary of State and Ministers of State, as explained by the Institute for Government. (instituteforgovernment.org.uk)

DSIT looks after the science base, research funding and the tech that runs through daily life, and it leads the push to make public services more digital. Its official overview sets a mission of speeding up innovation, improving public services and helping people trust technology; in 2024 the department also brought in digital and AI teams from GDS, the Central Digital and Data Office and i.AI to strengthen that work. (gov.uk)

Day to day, DSIT’s junior ministers commonly take on briefs such as online safety, digital regulation and skills, semiconductors, digital identity policy, and support for the government’s AI programme, including the AI Safety Institute. Those portfolios show how close this job is to issues you meet on your phone, your social media feeds and your coursework. (gov.uk)

For your home or classroom, the clearest link is connectivity. DSIT now houses Building Digital UK, which runs Project Gigabit and the Shared Rural Network. Government says it expects 99% of premises to have gigabit-capable broadband by 2032, and that previous targets of 85% gigabit and 95% 4G coverage were reached a year early. (gov.uk)

Digital identity is another live project. A machinery-of-government statement on 23 October 2025 confirmed the Cabinet Office leads policy, legislation and oversight, while DSIT is responsible for the technical design and build. That split helps explain why Simons keeping his Cabinet Office post matters for join up across departments. (gov.uk)

On AI and online safety, DSIT’s ministers support the government’s AI programme and the AI Safety Institute, and oversee online safety and digital regulation. These are the rules that shape how platforms work and how new technologies are tested and rolled out. (gov.uk)

On research, DSIT ministers steer the UK’s science system through bodies like UK Research and Innovation and the Advanced Research and Invention Agency, and they work on Horizon Europe and international science. Put simply, these decisions shape grants, labs and spin‑outs in universities and local firms. (gov.uk)

If you’re learning how government works, watch what happens next. Junior ministers are delegated specific portfolios and often pilot bills and appear before select committees, while the Secretary of State holds ultimate accountability. Expect GOV.UK to set out Simons’s exact brief once DSIT updates its ministerial pages. (instituteforgovernment.org.uk)

What this means for you: expect near‑term signals on digital public services, connectivity and responsible tech. If you study computing, politics or media, keep a short log of DSIT announcements this month and map each one to everyday life - faster broadband in your area, a change to an online safety tool, or a research grant at your university.