 Following the 2005 general election Blunkett was returned to the cabinet as Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, where he faced a growing pensions crisis.Two weeks before the election Blunkett took up a directorship in a company called DNA Bioscience and bought £15,000 of shares in the company.After sustained questions over a six-month period, Blunkett was asked on 31 October 2005 to explain why he had not consulted the Advisory Committee on Business Appointments regarding the directorship.