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Department of Trade and Industry (United Kingdom)

The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) was a United Kingdom government department formed on 19 October 1970. It was replaced with the creation of the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform and the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills on 28 June 2007.

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Department of Trade and Industry
Department overview
Formed19 October 1970 (1970-10-19)
Preceding agencies
Dissolved28 June 2007 (2007-06-28)
Superseding agencies
JurisdictionUnited Kingdom
HeadquartersVictoria Street, London
Minister responsible
WebsiteThe DTI website at the National Archives

The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) was a United Kingdom government department formed on 19 October 1970. It was replaced with the creation of the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform and the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills on 28 June 2007.12

History

The department was formed on 19 October 19703 through the merger of the Board of Trade and the Ministry of Technology, creating a new cabinet post of Secretary of State for Trade and Industry. Additionally, the department also took over the Department of Employment's former responsibilities for monopolies and mergers. However, in January 1974, the department's responsibilities for energy production were transferred to a newly created Department of Energy. On 5 March that year, following a Labour Party victory in the February 1974 general election, the department was split into the Department of Trade, the Department of Industry and the Department of Prices and Consumer Protection.4

The departments of Trade and Industry were reunited in 1983. The Department of Energy was re-merged back into the DTI in 1992, but various media-related functions transferred to the Department of National Heritage. Until it was succeeded in June 2007 the DTI continued to set the energy policy of the United Kingdom.5

After the 2005 general election the DTI was renamed to the Department for Productivity, Energy and Industry,6 but the name reverted to Department of Trade and Industry less than a week later,7 after widespread derision, including some from the Confederation of British Industry.8

In 2007, part of DTI merged into the new Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS), while most of it was renamed as the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR); part of that would become the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) in 2008. The responsibilities which had gone to DIUS largely returned in 2009 with a re-merger to create the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS), though in 2016 the Department for International Trade (DIT) was split off. Energy returned in 2017 with the creation of the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS); BEIS lasted until 2023 when this department was again split and mixed with other responsibilities, into the Department for Business and Trade (DBT), the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) and the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT).

Structure

The DTI had a wide range of responsibilities. There were ultimately nine main areas covered by the DTI:

  • Company Law
  • Trade
  • Business Growth
  • Innovation
  • Employment Law
  • Regional Economic Development
  • Energy
  • Science
  • Consumer Law.

Corporate policing

It also had responsibility for investigating misconduct by company directors, in which role Private Eye repeatedly lampooned it as "the Department of Timidity and Inaction".9

Ministers

Final ministers included.10

Minister Portrait Title Portfolio
Alistair Darling Secretary of State for Trade and Industry
President of the Board of Trade 		Overall responsibility for the Department of Trade and Industry and its policies including leading on energy.11
Margaret Hodge Minister of State for Industry & the Regions Responsibility for Business and Enterprise Group issues, including: Enterprise, growth and business investment; Strengthening regional economies; Small Business Service; E-commerce; Communications and information industries; Companies Act implementation; Companies House; Company Law Reform Bill; Shareholder Executive Industrial Development Unit portfolio; Corporate Social Responsibility.12
Ian McCartney Minister of State for Trade Responsible for trade policy; UK Trade and Investment; Export Credits Guarantee Department; Foreign Affairs (FCO); Competition; Consumer affairs; Corporate governance. Also attends Cabinet; Jointly with Foreign and Commonwealth Office.13
Malcolm Wicks Minister of State for Science & Innovation Responsible for Science and engineering; 10 year investment framework for science and innovation; Office of Science and Innovation (OSI); Research Councils; Knowledge Transfer and Innovation; Technology Strategy; Patent Office; National Weights and Measures Laboratory (NWML); Chemicals; Bioscience; DTI's interest in skills; British National Space Centre (BNSC); Waste Electronic and Waste Equipment (WEEE); Coal Health claims; Export control; Steel; Supports the Secretary of State on energy in the House of Commons.14
Peter Truscott, Baron Truscott Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Energy Supports the Secretary of State on energy issues; Sustainability and the environment; Security of energy supply; Fuel poverty; Nuclear security; Shareholder Executive energy portfolio; Covers all DTI business in the House of Lords.15
Jim Fitzpatrick Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Employment Relations & Postal Services
Minister for London 		Responsibility for maximising potential in the workplace; ACAS; Shareholder Executive oversight plus Royal Mail and Post Office; Corporate & Insolvency activity; Insolvency Service; Also Minister for London.16

Business advice and support

From 1999 to 2005 it led the national E-Commerce Awards with InterForum, a not for profit membership organisation which helped British businesses to trade electronically. This aimed to encourage small and medium-sized enterprises to develop their businesses through the use of E-commerce technologies.

A series of guidance documents concerned with business purchasing operations and supply chain management was published in 1991.17

Small firms' Merit Award for Research and Technology

The Small firms' Merit Award for Research and Technology (SMART) was a discretionary business grant scheme run by the DTI for a number of years in the 1980s and 1990s. The award was made to companies winning an annual competition (organised regionally) based on a judgement of the technical and market viability of research or technology development proposals; in essence the award represented seed-corn funding for innovative developments that had some market potential.

The scheme was generally considered to be very successful. In 2002 the scheme was changed from a competition to an award to any applicant who met minimum criteria. This led to several regions exhausting their budget. In 2005 the scheme was shut down and replaced with the Grant for Research and Development which was again a regional competition.

See also

See also

References

References

  1. "Department for business, enterprise and regulatory reform established" (Press release). Government News Network. 28 June 2007. Archived from the original on 14 December 2007. Retrieved 17 November 2016. The Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (DBERR) will lead work to create the conditions for business success through competitive and flexible markets that create value for businesses, consumers and employees. It will work across Government and with the regions to raise levels of UK productivity, promoting the creation and growth of business.
  2. "Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy - GOV.UK". www.bis.gov.uk. Retrieved 23 March 2018.
  3. "Records created or inherited by the Department of Trade and Industry". National Archives. National Archives. Retrieved December 22, 2012.
  4. "Page Not Found - The National Archives". nationalarchives.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 12 March 2018. Retrieved 23 March 2018. {{cite web}}: Cite uses generic title (help)
  5. "BERR history page". Archived from the original on 2008-12-04. Retrieved 2008-09-26.
  6. Smale, Will (10 May 2005). "DTI falls to the rebranding sword". BBC News. Retrieved 17 November 2016. To mark the start of Labour's third term in power, the DTI is no more, replaced by the Department for Productivity, Energy and Industry, or DPEI for short.
  7. "Jibes prompt DTI rebrand U-turn". BBC News. 13 May 2005. Retrieved 17 November 2016. New department head Alan Johnson persuaded Tony Blair to change the name back following derision from business leaders and unions.
  8. DTI loses its dippy new title after one week, The Guardian
  9. Norman Baker (19 May 2005). "Debate on Industry and the Environment - House of Commons". Hansard.
  10. "Ministerial Biographies". nationalarchives. Archived from the original on 3 June 2007. Retrieved 15 June 2026.
  11. "The Rt. Hon. Alistair Darling MP". nationalarchives. Archived from the original on 3 June 2007. Retrieved 15 June 2026.
  12. "Margaret Hodge MBE MP". nationalarchives. Archived from the original on 3 June 2007. Retrieved 15 June 2026.
  13. "Ian McCartney MP". nationalarchives. Archived from the original on 3 June 2007. Retrieved 15 June 2026.
  14. "Malcolm Wicks MP". nationalarchives. Archived from the original on 3 June 2007. Retrieved 15 June 2026.
  15. "Lord Truscott". nationalarchives. Archived from the original on 3 June 2007. Retrieved 15 June 2026.
  16. "Jim Fitzpatrick MP". nationalarchives. Archived from the original on 3 June 2007. Retrieved 15 June 2026.
  17. New, S. J., A framework for analysing supply chain improvement, International Journal of Operations & Production Management, volume 16, no. 4, 1996: References, pp. 32-33, accessed on 31 August 2025
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