What does Rishi Sunak’s mini-reshuffle reveal? When Nadhim Zahawi was sacked as party chairman, the Prime Minister took his time in deciding who would succeed him – eventually appointing Greg Hands. This time around Sunak has moved quickly in the wake of the report into bullying allegations that led to Dominic Raab’s resignation. Sunak hopes to move the news agenda on with a string of ministerial appointments.
As James Heale reports on Coffee House, Alex Chalk – a one nation Tory who backed Sunak in the leadership contest – is the new Justice Secretary. On top of this, Oliver Dowden takes on Raab’s deputy prime minister brief – while keeping his current role in the Cabinet Office. This is an unsurprising appointment, with Dowden one of Sunak’s closest political allies. He is already a regular face in meetings at No. 10 and had been tipped to be Sunak’s Chancellor had the Prime Minister not inherited Jeremy Hunt as a result of the demise of Liz Truss’s premiership. Over the summer, Dowden played an instrumental role in Sunak’s unsuccessful leadership campaign. Dowden also resigned as party chairman near the end of Boris Johnson’s premiership following disappointing local election results.
With the Secretary of State for the new science department Michelle Donelan going on maternity leave, former work and pensions secretary Chloe Smith has been appointed as her maternity cover. This is an interesting appointment as Smith has already signalled she plans to step down at the next election. John Whittingdale – the former culture secretary – will cover for Julia Lopez on maternity leave as a minister of state for both DCMS and the science department.
As often tends to be the case, the various briefings about a potential reshuffle were more exciting than the reshuffle itself. The Prime Minister will likely be criticised for failing to appoint a woman to either position. Sunak has taken a safety first approach with these appointments. The two key appointments – Dowden and Chalk – are Sunak loyalists who are regarded as safe pairs of hands. The hope will be that both men are sufficiently scandal-proof to avoid a repeat of what sparked the reshuffle in the first place.
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April 21, 2023 at 09:15PM
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Sunak opts for loyalty first in reshuffle - The Spectator
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