The announcement comes after more than 50 members of Johnson’s government resigned in the last couple of days
FILE PHOTO. Britain’s Prime Minister Boris Johnson speaks during the first post-reshuffle cabinet meeting in Downing street, central London. © AFP / Ben STANSALL
Embattled British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is reportedly appointing a full replacement cabinet, having resigned his leadership of the Tory party.
Greg Clark has been named as the new Levelling Up Secretary, replacing Michael Gove. The latter was fired by Johnson over his widely reported calls for the PM to step down. Clark had previously served as business secretary and currently chairs the Commons science committee.
James Cleverly has been appointed as the new education secretary in lieu of Michelle Donelan, who herself was only appointed on Tuesday but quit after less than two days on the job. Cleverly had previously served as minister of state at the Foreign Office.
Kit Malthouse is becoming chancellor for the Duchy of Lancaster, the most senior minister in the Cabinet Office, second only to the prime minister himself.
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Welsh MP Sir Robert Buckland will be in charge of the Office of the Secretary of State for Wales, while Shailesh Vara has been named the new secretary of state for Northern Ireland.
By Thursday morning, there were at least 53 resignations, including key figures such as the ministers of finance and education.
Despite surviving a no-confidence vote in Parliament last month, Johnson and his cabinet have been increasingly embroiled in a number of controversies. In May, an internal inquiry confirmed that government officials had routinely flouted Covid-19 social distancing rules, and several of them, including Johnson himself, were fined.
On Wednesday, Johnson admitted that he made a “bad mistake” by appointing Chris Pincher as deputy chief whip, an official tasked with marshaling government procedures. Pincher resigned from his post late last week following allegations of sexual misconduct.
