Inside Politics: Johnson reshuffles pack and UK in pact with US and Aus to counter China

Gavin Williamson and Dominic Raab among casualties and Britain, US and Australia drawing up plans to to build a nuclear powered submarine fleet to curb Beijing, writes Matt Mathers

Thursday 16 September 2021 08:31 BST

(PA)

The gambler has reshuffled the pack. Following days of intense speculation, Boris Johnson finally carried out his long-awaited cabinet clear out. Gavin Williamson, one of a number of jokers in Johnson’s deck, finally got the boot. More on the ins and outs of yesterday’s events below. Elsewhere, Britain has entered into a security pact with the US and Australia to counter China and the PM’s refusal to rebuild the UK’s “dysfunctional relationship” with the EU is damaging foreign and security policy, a former diplomat says.

Inside the bubble

More ministerial changes are expected later today. There are two backbench debates on the role and the response of the devolved administrations to COP26 and reforms to the criminal justice system to better respond to families bereaved by public disasters. Brandon Lewis, the Northern Ireland secretary, appears at the Northern Ireland affairs committee at 9.30am to answer questions on the government’s handling of Troubles legacy issues.

Coming up:

-Shadow child poverty secretary Wes Streeting on Sky News Breakfast at 8.05am

-Defence secretary Ben Wallace on BBC Radio 4 Today at 8.10am

Daily Briefing

CABINET CLEAR OUT: Johnson’s long-awaited cabinet reshuffle dominates the papers this morning. The PM asserted his dominance over the government with a larger-than-expected clear out which swept underperforming ministers out of the cabinet and delivered demotions for “big beasts” Michael Gove and Raab. In a shake-up characterised by No 10 as creating a team to “build back better” after the Covid pandemic, the prime minister replaced Raab with Liz Truss as foreign secretary following his humiliation over Afghanistan, and dismissed Williamson as education secretary after a succession of missteps culminating in him confusing one black England sports star, Marcus Rashford, with another, Maro Itoje. Here’s a full write-up of all the ins and outs. More ministerial changes are expected later today.

GANG OF THREE: Britain has entered into a security pact with the US and Australia to counter China that will involve building a nuclear-powered submarine fleet and wide-ranging projects on cyber warfare, artificial intelligence and quantum computing. Senior British officials insist the new alliance is not aimed at any one country, but it comes in the face of increasingly aggressive posturing from China and has the stated aim of protecting the “rules-based international order” that Beijing has been accused repeatedly of flouting.

‘TRUST AT A LOW EB’: The PM’s refusal to rebuild the UK’s “dysfunctional relationship” with the EU is damaging foreign and security policy, a former top diplomat says. Peter Ricketts, a former head of the Foreign Office, says the prime minister’s “tactic” of trying to build closer links with national capitals instead “will not work” and must be rethought. However, Lord Ricketts said the bitter spats between London and Brussels since Brexit made the task hugely difficult, adding: “Unfortunately trust is now at a very low ebb.”

Following the...erm, science?: It seems fair to say that Sajid Javid hasn’t had an amazing start in his job as health secretary, which hardly comes as a surprise given he’s a banker with a degree in politics and economics. Earlier this year Javid came under fire for saying the public needed to stop cowering from Covid. Now he’s got himself into a row with the British Medical Association, after suggesting he and his colleagues don’t need to wear face masks because they aren’t strangers to one another, which is interesting logic, given that it’s still possible to catch the virus even when double jabbed. BMA chair Chaand Nagpaul said that the health secretary and other ministers were showing a “shocking” lack of responsibility by not wearing masks in the Commons, at a time when infections are running at an average of 35,000 a day.

NO ANSWER: Johnson has refused to explain how Universal Credit claimants should recoup their looming £20-a-week cut in payments, as he branded criticism of the move “absurd”. In fierce clashes in the Commons, the prime minister was challenged to set out how many hours of extra work will be needed – after a cabinet minister wrongly claimed it is just 2. But Johnson declined to say whether the true figure is higher or lower – after experts concluded the answer is up to 9 – and instead criticised putting taxes “into benefits”. Keir Starmer, speaking ahead of a Commons vote on the controversy, said a single parent on the minimum wage would have to find an extra 9 hours a week “just to get the money back that the prime minister has taken away from them”. MPs later voted in favour of cancelling the £20-a-week Universal Credit, although it was a symbolic, non-binding vote, meaning it will be ignored by the PM.

On the record

“Poverty is a political choice. And this Conservative government is choosing to take £20 each week from the poorest families in the country. For me this is more than political. It is personal.”

Labour MP for Houghton & Sunderland South Bridget Phillipson on UC cut.

From the Twitterati

“One more on #Reshuffle. PM known for rewarding loyalty, but he was ruthless in sacking loyal ministers Williamson/Jenrick. Perhaps a message that loyalty alone doesn’t cut it these days as he looks for delivery of policy? (whether that happens w Covid/tight budgets another matter.”

Sky news politics editor Beth Rigby on cabinet reshuffle.