Former British Prime Minister David Cameron has unexpectedly returned to the government in London as Foreign Minister. This is the result of a cabinet reshuffle by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. The conservative Prime Minister had previously fired his Interior Minister Suella Bravermann. The previous foreign minister, James Cleverly, took over her post.
The new head of foreign affairs is now Cameron, who resigned in 2016 after the British voted to leave the European Union in a referendum he had called for. He is considered to be part of the moderate wing of the Conservative Party and was head of government from 2010 to 2016. At that time, Cameron campaigned for his country to remain in the EU.
Miserable poll numbers for Sunak
Sunak is fighting for his political survival in the face of miserable poll numbers and a general election scheduled for next year. A cabinet reshuffle had been expected for some time.
The right-wing politician Braveman has recently repeatedly caused heated debates. Among other things, Braverman accused the police of being blind in the left eye and of tolerating violations of the law by pro-Palestinian demonstrators. She made her allegations in a guest article in the “Times” – without coordination with the head of government’s office, as a spokesman for Sunak had confirmed. Her dismissal was therefore already expected.
Braverman announces statement
“It has been the greatest privilege of my life to serve as Interior Secretary. I will have more to say soon,” Braverman reportedly said.
She had repeatedly caused a stir in the past with her right-wing populist initiatives. She once described it as her dream to see a plane carrying asylum seekers taking off for Rwanda. The British government wants to deport people seeking protection from all origins there in the future, without examining their asylum application – instead, people should apply for asylum in the East African country and stay there. So far, however, this has failed due to resistance from the courts. A ruling from Britain’s highest court, the Supreme Court, is expected on Wednesday.
Too many missteps
She condemned pro-Palestinian demonstrations across the board as “hate marches.” According to many commentators, she crossed a red line with her criticism of the police under her ministry. Critics accused her of even provoking attacks on police by far-right counter-demonstrators at a pro-Palestinian protest over the weekend with her comments.
Braverman is considered a promising candidate for the party leadership if the Conservatives lose the election, as expected. It was speculated that with the police scolding and other statements she wanted to position herself as a candidate from the right wing of the party – and perhaps even wanted to intentionally cause her to be expelled.
