<p><span>The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) is to be rebranded the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities as the government pledges to deliver on its “central mission to level up every part of the UK” and housing minister Christopher Pincher is reappointed.</span><span></span></p> <p><span>This follows last week’s cabinet reshuffle which saw Michael Gove replace Robert Jenrick as housing secretary, also being handed responsibility for the “levelling up” agenda. </span><span></span></p> <p><span>The renaming also comes as Andy Haldane, former Bank of England chief economist, was yesterday (September 19) appointed the new head of the Levelling Up Taskforce. The taskforce was jointly set up by the prime minister Boris Johnson and Gove - referred to as secretary of state for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities.</span><span></span></p> <p><span>The Levelling Up Taskforce will report to the PM and Gove, with Haldane joining as a permanent secretary in the cabinet office on secondment from the Royal Society of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (RSA) for six months.</span><span></span></p> <p><span>The government outlined some of Gove’s other responsibilities under his new role, including heading a programme to deliver “tangible improvements” across the UK, “as we build back better from the pandemic, and deliver on the people’s priorities”. </span><span></span></p> …