Camborne and Redruth MP George Eustice has become a minister for DEFRA, the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.

Mr Eustice, 42, is a former director of Trevaskis Farm at Gwinear, near Hayle, which his family owns.

The former member of Praze Young Farmers Club will be responsible for fisheries, floods, biodiversity and land management in his role as a parliamentary under secretary of state.

Mr Eustice said on his website: “I spent ten years working in the farming industry and policies relating to water and the fishing industry are particularly important to Cornwall. I am really looking forward to working with colleagues within DEFRA to champion the interests of rural communities.”

He has previously studied commercial horticulture at Writtle Agricultural College in Essex between 1990 and 1993 and worked for a year at Bransford Nurseries in Worcester before spending a decade helping his family on their farm growing 200 acres of winter vegetables and 50 acres of strawberries, plus operating a pedigree herd of South Devon Cattle.

Dan Rogerson, MP for North Cornwall, has also been given a ministerial post in Defra, taking over from Somerton and Frome’s David Heath.