The British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has fired his Home Secretary Suella Braverman, today, November 13, just days after it was revealed that a controversial newspaper article attacking the Metropolitan Police was published without permission from the Prime Minister.
The British Home Office is the lead government department for crime, the police, drugs policy, immigration and passports, and counter-terrorism.
Braverman was accused of stoking tension ahead of protests in London by accusing the Metropolitan Police of playing favourites when tackling aggressive Israel-Gaza protests in an article in a local newspaper, The Times.
Prime Minister Sunak has been under pressure from the opposition and some members of his Conservative Party for letting Braverman stay in her position after she published the article, which was deemed to be a violation of the ministerial code.
“Our brave police officers deserve the thanks of every decent citizen for their professionalism in the face of violence and aggression from protesters and counter-protesters in London yesterday. That multiple officers were injured doing their duty is an outrage,” Braverman said in a statement on Sunday evening following far-right violence during the protests over the weekend.
She further added, “The sick, inflammatory, and, in some cases, clearly criminal chants, placards, and paraphernalia openly on display at the march mark a new low. Antisemitism and other forms of racism, together with the valorization of terrorism on such a scale, are deeply troubling.”
Her intervention in support of the police, however, may have come too late to save her career in the end.
James Cleverly has been announced as her replacement, and former Prime Minister David Cameron is bouncing back as the foreign secretary.
Rishi Sunak’s termination of Braverman kicks off a massive cabinet reshuffle as he reshapes his top team ahead of next week’s Autumn Statement.
The prime minister’s official spokeswoman said, “This reshuffle will provide the prime minister with a united team to deliver the long-term change this country requires.”
