Jacob Rees-Mogg in crony line after business partner made peer and minister

Jacob Rees-Mogg is caught up in a line of cronyism after his investment firm partner suddenly received a peerage and was made a government minister.

Dominic Johnson co-founded Somerset Capital Management with the Business Secretary – both winners several million from the company, including from the fall of the pound after the Brexit vote.

Now Mr Johnson has been appointed as a minister in both the Cabinet Office and the Department for International Trade, revealed an ad slipped on the government's website.

The move comes amid controversy over the cabinet's close ties to city financiers, after Chancellor K Wasi Kwarteng celebrated his mini budget with hedge fund managers.

The package delivered huge gains to bankers and financiers, some of whom also made their fortunes shorting the pound as its value fell sharply again.

Mr. Johnson donated huge sums to the Conservative Party and was its vice-president. president between 2016 and 2019.

Nick Thomas-Symonds, Labour's shadow international trade secretary, said: "After bringing down the economy with unfunded tax cuts for the worst earners rich and lifted the cap on bankers' bonuses, it is unbelievable that the Tories appointed an unelected asset fund manager to government who happens to be a party donor.

“While millions workers are faced with agonizing choices about what essentials they can afford, Liz Truss – once again – shows that she is not on their side.”

Sarah Olney, spokesman for the Liberal Democrat Treasury, said: "Unfortunately, this is exactly what we expected when Liz Truss appointed Jacob Rees-Mogg to lead UK trade policy: jobs for friends of the Conservative Party all by cutting taxes for big banks and billions aires."

The government statement reads: "Dominic Johnson CBE was appointed Joint Minister of State in the Department for International Trade and the Cabinet Office on 2 October 2022.

< p>" Dominic has spent the last 25 years in entrepreneurial and international finance," he said, adding, "He started various internet businesses in the early 2000s and eventually moved into asset management in 2001."

Mr Rees-Mogg stopped receiving salaries from Somerset Capital Management in 2019 but remains a shareholder, believed to be in his teenage lows.

The fervent Brexiter Reportedly pocketed at least £7m in dividends from the company since the EU referendum in 2016 and received around £15,000 a month from the company on top of his MP salary.

Mr. Johnson was appointed after the long-serving chief executive of Legal & General turned down a job as minister for investment.

Sir Nigel Wilson decided he'd rather stay at the ce insurance, firm savings and retirement company he has run for more than a decade, The Times reported.