14 November 2023 , 22:15
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Sacked Suella Braverman has intensified a bitter Tory civil war with her vicious political attack on weak Rishi Sunak.
The dumped Home Secretary’s three-page letter was savage even by the standards of a Government in which many ministers appear to detest each other and hold the Prime Minister in utter contempt. Sunak’s lifestyle choice to kick Braverman out of his tent marked the beginning of a fresh crisis as she is hellbent on ensuring the Tories lose the election so she can become leader.
She says today’s Supreme Court ruling on the immoral and expensive plan to exile asylum seekers would, if given the green light, not even be effective, which is the Tory right wing burning down the Conservative house. Sunak made David Cameron Foreign Secretary in a bid to mask Braverman’s sacking, but it was a smokescreen she blew away in a day.
Split and unruly, the Tories help Keir Starmer, who faces a tricky vote on the Gaza conflict with rebels vowing to back an SNP amendment to the King’s Speech. But it is the Tories who are tearing themselves apart, Braverman’s broadside proof the leadership battle to succeed Sunak has begun.
Troubled water
The new Environment Secretary Steve Barclay must expect close scrutiny when his wife is a boss at Anglia Water and this Tory government is soft on polluters. Health Secretary Victoria Atkins will also be watched like a hawk, her husband a sugar tycoon when we are in a war against obesity. Potential conflicts of interest in politics must be transparent so voters know whether a minister is acting in the public interest – or in the narrower interests of their own families.
Teachers, civil servants and train drivers walk out in biggest strike in decade
Heir to phone
King Charles’ 75th birthday was anything but business as usual when a call from his youngest son Harry was scheduled. Landmark moments in life have the power to bring families together. As well as drive them apart.