After details of his rather-too-close relationship with the Murdoch clan were revealed to the Leveson Inquiry, it was a safe bet that Jeremy Hunt would be moved from his role as secretary of state for culture, media and sport in last month’s cabinet reshuffle. His replacement, Maria Miller, however, came as more of a surprise.
Hunt gained a reputation for being an “eager assassin”, offering up his department for a disproportionate amount of cuts, and his departure has not been widely mourned. But as an unknown quantity with little recorded interest in arts and heritage, the jury is still out on his successor.
Miller, 48, grew up in south Wales and graduated with an economics degree from the London School of Economics. She has a background in PR and advertising, becoming director of the marketing company Grey Advertising at the age of 30, before moving on to work as director of PR firm Rowland Saatchi.
Low-key career
Aside from a minor controversy in 2000, when she appeared in a Tory ad campaign as a “disgruntled Labour voter” criticising Tony Blair, without mentioning that she was a member of the Conservative Party, Miller has led a relatively low-key political career so far, toeing her party’s line on key issues.
She joined parliament in 2005 as MP for Basingstoke in the Conservative heartland of Hampshire. After a stint as shadow welfare minister, Miller became minister for disabled people when the coalition was formed two-and-a-half years ago.
Her term as disability minister has been controversial. Changes to the way in which benefits are allocated stirred up anger among disability campaigners, while Miller’s decision last year to close the Remploy factories that offered sheltered employment to disabled people earned her the Thatcherite nickname, “Maria Miller, factory killer”.
On her website, Miller lists her political interests as education, media and housing. Aside from telling the Sunday Times last month that she admired how Tate Modern’s Damien Hirst exhibition engaged young people, as Museums Journal went to press, Miller had yet to make any announcement related to museums or galleries.
Expertise no prerequisite
Her lack of experience has some cultural commentators worried, but expertise is not necessarily a prerequisite for the role. There is hope that, as a media and PR expert, Miller’s advocacy skills may work in the sector’s favour, while her lack of experience could mean she will approach the brief with an open mind and a willingness to start a dialogue, rather than dictate policy from above.
Her record as disability minister may suggest otherwise, however – in one of Miller’s last acts in the role, she refused to debate with disabled campaigners critical of her policies on BBC Newsnight during the Paralympics, instead prerecording an interview ahead of the live show.
The new culture secretary has some professional connections that could possibly create a conflict of interest in her new role.
The archaeology magazine Heritage Daily draws attention to Miller’s attendance at events and conferences organised by the Conservative peer, Lord Lingfield, chairman of the Maritime Heritage Foundation – the charity contracted by an American salvage company to stage a “commercial recovery of material” from the 18th-century shipwreck HMS Victory. As the new head of heritage policy, Miller has a key role in the decision to allow the controversial salvage operation to go ahead.
Miller’s inoffensive first appearance as culture secretary in the House of Commons gave little away about her plans. Unsurprisingly, she cited building on the “Olympic legacy” as her top priority.
With many of Hunt’s private giving initiatives already rolled out, it is unlikely that she will change course on her predecessor’s much-vaunted drive to boost philanthropy, although it may not be a pet project for her in quite the same way as it was for Hunt.
All change
Miller’s appointment is not the only change at the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS). Ed Vaizey has kept his job as culture minister, but in what seems like an ill-timed decision after this summer’s high-profile events, the minister for heritage and tourism, John Penrose, has been moved. His brief will now be split between Vaizey, who will take on heritage, and sports minister Hugh Robertson, who gets tourism.
Meanwhile, Peter Bazalgette, the television producer who brought the reality show Big Brother to the UK and current chair of the English National Opera, has been announced as the new chairman of Arts Council England. He will replace Liz Forgan in January 2013.
In addition, Miller has been appointed minister for women and equalities, a role she will hold jointly with her brief as culture secretary.
Reports of the imminent demise of the DCMS earlier this summer may have been exaggerated, but the appointment of such an untested figure has done little to quell speculation that Miller’s key task as culture secretary will be to turn out the lights at the department a year or two down the line.
That remains to be seen, but in the meantime, Miller has inherited a full in-tray at a tumultuous time for the sector. People working in the cultural and heritage industries hope the new secretary of state is someone who will fight their corner.
Vox pop: what should Miller's priorities be?
Hunt gained a reputation for being an “eager assassin”, offering up his department for a disproportionate amount of cuts, and his departure has not been widely mourned. But as an unknown quantity with little recorded interest in arts and heritage, the jury is still out on his successor.
Miller, 48, grew up in south Wales and graduated with an economics degree from the London School of Economics. She has a background in PR and advertising, becoming director of the marketing company Grey Advertising at the age of 30, before moving on to work as director of PR firm Rowland Saatchi.
Low-key career
Aside from a minor controversy in 2000, when she appeared in a Tory ad campaign as a “disgruntled Labour voter” criticising Tony Blair, without mentioning that she was a member of the Conservative Party, Miller has led a relatively low-key political career so far, toeing her party’s line on key issues.
She joined parliament in 2005 as MP for Basingstoke in the Conservative heartland of Hampshire. After a stint as shadow welfare minister, Miller became minister for disabled people when the coalition was formed two-and-a-half years ago.
Her term as disability minister has been controversial. Changes to the way in which benefits are allocated stirred up anger among disability campaigners, while Miller’s decision last year to close the Remploy factories that offered sheltered employment to disabled people earned her the Thatcherite nickname, “Maria Miller, factory killer”.
On her website, Miller lists her political interests as education, media and housing. Aside from telling the Sunday Times last month that she admired how Tate Modern’s Damien Hirst exhibition engaged young people, as Museums Journal went to press, Miller had yet to make any announcement related to museums or galleries.
Expertise no prerequisite
Her lack of experience has some cultural commentators worried, but expertise is not necessarily a prerequisite for the role. There is hope that, as a media and PR expert, Miller’s advocacy skills may work in the sector’s favour, while her lack of experience could mean she will approach the brief with an open mind and a willingness to start a dialogue, rather than dictate policy from above.
Her record as disability minister may suggest otherwise, however – in one of Miller’s last acts in the role, she refused to debate with disabled campaigners critical of her policies on BBC Newsnight during the Paralympics, instead prerecording an interview ahead of the live show.
The new culture secretary has some professional connections that could possibly create a conflict of interest in her new role.
The archaeology magazine Heritage Daily draws attention to Miller’s attendance at events and conferences organised by the Conservative peer, Lord Lingfield, chairman of the Maritime Heritage Foundation – the charity contracted by an American salvage company to stage a “commercial recovery of material” from the 18th-century shipwreck HMS Victory. As the new head of heritage policy, Miller has a key role in the decision to allow the controversial salvage operation to go ahead.
Miller’s inoffensive first appearance as culture secretary in the House of Commons gave little away about her plans. Unsurprisingly, she cited building on the “Olympic legacy” as her top priority.
With many of Hunt’s private giving initiatives already rolled out, it is unlikely that she will change course on her predecessor’s much-vaunted drive to boost philanthropy, although it may not be a pet project for her in quite the same way as it was for Hunt.
All change
Miller’s appointment is not the only change at the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS). Ed Vaizey has kept his job as culture minister, but in what seems like an ill-timed decision after this summer’s high-profile events, the minister for heritage and tourism, John Penrose, has been moved. His brief will now be split between Vaizey, who will take on heritage, and sports minister Hugh Robertson, who gets tourism.
Meanwhile, Peter Bazalgette, the television producer who brought the reality show Big Brother to the UK and current chair of the English National Opera, has been announced as the new chairman of Arts Council England. He will replace Liz Forgan in January 2013.
In addition, Miller has been appointed minister for women and equalities, a role she will hold jointly with her brief as culture secretary.
Reports of the imminent demise of the DCMS earlier this summer may have been exaggerated, but the appointment of such an untested figure has done little to quell speculation that Miller’s key task as culture secretary will be to turn out the lights at the department a year or two down the line.
That remains to be seen, but in the meantime, Miller has inherited a full in-tray at a tumultuous time for the sector. People working in the cultural and heritage industries hope the new secretary of state is someone who will fight their corner.
Vox pop: what should Miller's priorities be?
The Miller’s tale: Maria Miller’s career at a glance
- 2012: Appointed secretary of state for culture, media and sport
- 2010: Became minister for disabled people in coalition government
- 2005: Elected MP for Tory safe seat Basingstoke in Hampshire
- 1994-2003: Served as director of Grey Advertising and PR firm Rowland Saatchi
- 1985-1994: Stints at Grey Advertising and then Texaco
- 1985: Completed BSc in economics at the London School of Economics
