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Maria Miller replaces Jeremy Hunt as head of UK broadband policy

Hunt, who has overseen the rollout of super-fast broadband and tried to resolve operator logjams ahead of the 4G spectrum auction, is the new British health secretary. His replacement is marketing veteran Maria Miller.
Written by David Meyer, Contributor

The UK has a new chief of broadband policy, after Maria Miller took over the role of culture secretary from Jeremy Hunt on Tuesday.

Maria Miller
Maria Miller. Image credit: DWP

Miller's promotion from the Department of Work and Pensions came as part of a cabinet reshuffle, with prime minister David Cameron moving Hunt into the health secretary's seat.

While Hunt's role put him in the spotlight regarding media policy and the Olympics, he did not make much of an impression as head of the UK's broadband and technology policy.

His most notable actions were trying to stop operators fighting among themselves in the run-up to the 4G spectrum auctions, and overseeing a super-fast broadband rollout that has drawn sharp criticism from peers over its preoccupation with speed targets.

Miller is an interesting choice, as she lacks any obvious experience in either media or technology policy.

Her background is in advertising and marketing, although she does have an economics degree from the LSE.

Miller will be splitting her time between two roles, having also been made minister for women and equalities.

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