Peacock, who is the MP for Barnsley South in Yorkshire, takes over from Sir Chris Bryant, who has moved over to the Department for Business and Trade.
It comes after prime minister Keir Starmer was forced into a reshuffle, prompted by the departure of deputy prime minister Angela Rayner last Friday (5 September). A new aviation minister is yet to be announced.
Bryant had only been in post for just over a year, but nonetheless became the first tourism minister to say he considered outbound travel to be as important as the inbound market.
Peacock already held a role within the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, which carries the tourism brief, prior the reshuffle and has now had tourism added to her portfolio, alongside sport, civil society and youth.
The role of tourism minister changed regularly during the previous Conservative government, with the lack of continuity impacting the travel industry’s lobbying efforts.
Previous tourism ministers in the last government included Nigel Huddleston, Lord Syed Kamall and Julia Lopez, with John Whittingdale taking on the role on an interim basis while Lopez was on maternity leave in 2023.
Joss Croft, chief executive of UKinbound, said Peacock’s appointment came at a “pivotal moment” for the industry as the government is due to launch a new tourism strategy imminently.
"We are pleased to see Stephanie take up this vitally important position in government and we look forward to working closely with her in the coming months," said Croft.
"I would also like to extend my sincere thanks to the outgoing minister Sir Chris Bryant MP. He was a consistent supporter of the sector and worked closely with industry stakeholders to ensure our collective voice was heard."
Meanwhile, Keir Mather has been appointed under-secretary of state for transport at the age of 27, making him the youngest minister since William Gladstone in 1834.
Mather takes over from Mike Kane as maritime minister. A Department for Transport spokesperson said an announcement on who will succeed Kane in the aviation minister roles was still to be made.
