British prime minister Rishi Sunak has sought to banish divisions from around his cabinet table and instead promote “unity” by sacking Suella Braverman and appointing David Cameron, according to Downing Street officials.
Mr Sunak sacked the outspoken Ms Braverman as home secretary in a telephone call early on Monday morning and replaced her with James Cleverly, who was the foreign secretary.
Then, in a move that jolted Westminster, Mr Sunak appointed former prime minister David Cameron as his new foreign secretary, capping one of the great British political comebacks of recent decades.
Mr Sunak’s press secretary told reporters at Downing Street on Monday afternoon that the prime minister sacked Ms Braverman over a “difference in style” and also difficulties with the language that she used when describing her political views.
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Mr Sunak was known to have been annoyed last week when she described homelessness as a “lifestyle choice” for some people.
The press secretary also suggested that Mr Sunak believed Ms Braverman had breached the principle of collective cabinet responsibility by appearing to challenge him on certain issues.
“The prime minister believes collective responsibility is an important principle. Government ministers must speak with one voice,” said the official. “He has the right to change the teamsheet.”
The official added that Mr Cameron’s experience of world affairs would be a “huge advantage” for the UK government as it tries to navigate an unstable geopolitical landscape.
Ms Braverman departed by saying that serving as home secretary had been the “greatest privilege of my life” and hinted that she would have more to say about her sacking in future.
Mr Cameron, a Remainer who quit as prime minister in 2016 after losing the Brexit referendum, has been made a lifetime member of the House of Lords by Mr Sunak.
The move was necessary to facilitate his appointment as foreign secretary because he is no longer an MP. Cabinet members must be a member of one of the houses of parliament in order to serve in government. He will be paid a Lords ministerial salary of about £104,000 (€119,000) to serve as foreign secretary.
Lindsay Hoyle, the speaker of the House of Commons, raised concerns on Monday about how Mr Cameron will be accountable to MPs, as he will be unable to answer their questions in the house.
Downing Street said MPs questions on foreign affairs matters would instead be answered in the Commons by Andrew Mitchell, a more junior minister in the department.
[ Suella Braverman: A timeline of controversiesOpens in new window ]
Mr Cameron said he was quitting all outside roles to rejoin the cabinet, including his position as president of Alzheimers Research UK and also as a lobbyist. He said he now only has “one job: foreign secretary”.
While his appointment was welcomed by many moderate and centrist members of the Tory party, Mr Cameron’s return was sharply criticised by former party leader Iain Duncan Smith, a high-profile critic of the Chinese government. Mr Cameron was seen as being close to China when he was prime minister and lobbied for projects funded by the Chinese government after he left office.
The sacking of Ms Braverman and the appointment of Mr Cameron were among a slew of ministerial changes made by Mr Sunak in what may be his final reshuffle before next year’s election. He demoted Greg Hands from the role of party chairman to a junior trade role. Therese Coffey was also allowed to resign as environment secretary.
Victoria Atkins was promoted to health secretary, while GB News presenter Esther McVey was appointed to a roving cabinet role in a move widely seen as a sop to the right wing of the party, which was unnerved by the sacking of Ms Braverman.
