Liam Byrne to shadow Cabinet Office

Byrne, one of a few senior Labour figures with a business background, will oppose Maude, who is leading the government's drive to reduce its deficit through efficiency savings. The new shadow for the Cabinet Office minister famously left a note to his successor as chief secretary to the treasury before last May's election, saying "sorry there is no money left". Liam Byrne worked in banking before launching his own technology firm, e-Government Solutions, a provider of e-commerce software to government. Byrne worked as an advisor to Tony Blair before being elected as an MP in 2004. He will join 29 other Labour MPs in Ed Miliband's new shadow Cabinet team. Speaking about his appointments, Miliband said: "I am delighted with my new shadow cabinet, drawn from a broad range of talents across our party. "My team is united in one central mission for the future – to win back the trust of the British people and take Labour back to power."