Suella Braverman out as Home Secretary
Spectator (UK)Dec 23, 2022
UK: Home Secretary, Chief Whip Resign
Image copyright: Sopa Images/Rex/Shutterstock [via the Guardian]
The Facts
The UK government was plunged into further chaos on Wednesday as the home secretary and chief whip resigned. This follows the sacking of Kwasi Kwarteng as Chancellor last Friday.
Home secretary Suella Braverman was forced to quit after she violated ministerial rules by sending an official document from her personal email. Her resignation letter contained a withering commentary on the PM's premiership, saying "Pretending we haven't made any mistakes...is not serious politics."
The Spin
Left narrative
This is a government in chaos. After a series of humiliating U-turns on economic policy, Truss is desperately trying to appeal to a broader section of the Conservative party. The PM has been forced to abandon ideological commitments to austerity and shrinking the administrative state, and instead embraced the more moderate party factions that want her out of government. The Tories can't even manage the basics of governance — they should make way for a Labour administration that can.
Right narrative
This isn't an invigoration of the left of the Conservative party, it's the death of the party itself. Truss has surrounded herself with "One Nationers" whose records contradict her ideological rhetoric. Not only does this make the government appear weak and contrarian in the eyes of the electorate, but it undermines the fundamental party principles. The PM should have stood stalwart and unified right-wing Conservatives around her agenda.