Liz Truss has appointed Greg Hands, a supporter of her party leadership rival Rishi Sunak, as a minister at the Department of International Trade.

Mr Hands joins the government following the sacking of Conor Burns over complaints of alleged “serious misconduct”.

After arriving in Downing Street, Ms Truss removed all Mr Sunak’s supporters from their cabinet positions including Dominic Raab, Grant Shapps and George Eustice. But she later appointed some supporters of her defeated rival to positions in her junior team.

Mr Hands, MP for Chelsea and Fulham, previously served as a trade minister when Boris Johnson and Theresa May were at No 10. He was most recently a minister at the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy.

The appointment follows appeals over the weekend by several cabinet ministers for the party to unite and rally behind Ms Truss after weeks of unrest over her policies.

Mr Burns denies any wrongdoing and says he looks forward to clearing his name.