WORCESTER MP Robin Walker has been handed a promotion - and is now the closest confidante of Britain's youngest ever female Cabinet minister.

Mr Walker has become Parliamentary Private Secretary (PPS) to Liz Truss, who David Cameron made Environment Secretary last week.

Mrs Truss, who is 38, is an Oxford graduate and took over from Owen Paterson after the Prime Minister decided on a frantic reshuffle of his top team.

The PPS role means Mr Walker is now acting as her go-between contact with MPs, and is just one rung below a junior minister.

It is seen as a starting point for many MPs who are looking to become ministers themselves.

Mrs Truss' role includes food and rural affairs, as well as flooding and picking up from the disastrous badger cull.

Mr Walker said: "It's a real nice step forward and while Worcester is not the most rural constituency, the fact her responsibilities include flooding makes this very handy for me.

"I'll be making sure I put the concerns my constituents have to her and am looking forward to working together."

Last year Mr Walker acted as PPS to Andrew Robathan, the-then minister for Northern Ireland.

But grabbing a role assisting a very senior Cabinet member means he will be having regular contact with the Prime Minister's inner circle.

While he is not technically part of the Government, it also means Mr Walker is bound by the 'collective ministerial responsibility' convention and must resign if he speaks out against policy.

He has been told he can carry on working on the business, innovation and skills select committee, which routinely grills the bosses of major multi-national companies.

"It's a surprise promotion for me but a very useful one, and I have been assured I will still be able to do my select committee work," he said.

Mrs Truss, like Mr Walker, was elected to parliament for the first time in 2010 and is MP for South West Norfolk.