UK’s home secretary Suella Braverman steps down, Grant Shapps replaces her

London

UK’s home secretary Suella Braverman stepped down on Wednesday just six weeks after being appointed to the post, putting the Liz Truss government in further turmoil. 

According to reports, Braverman offered to resign after admitting to accidentally leaking national security details. 

She is the second Cabinet minister to leave the Liz Truss government after finance minister Kwasi Kwarteng quit over the mini-budget fiasco last week.

Soon after Braverman's resignation, Prime Minister Liz Truss's office named Grant Shapps, the former transport secretary and one of Truss’s most prominent critics, as the next home secretary.

Truss's office said former transport minister Shapps had been appointed interior minister, replacing Suella Braverman who resigned earlier on Wednesday. 

Shapps told the Telegraph, "It's a great honour to be appointed as Home Secretary today. I'm looking forward to getting stuck into the role, providing the sort of security the British people need, regardless of what else is happening in Westminster. The Home Office is at the heart of that in so many ways, it's a great office of state, I'm obviously honoured to do that role." 

Earlier, Braverman took to Twitter to explain the reason behind her resignation.

“Earlier today, I sent an official document from my personal email to a trusted parliamentary colleague as part of policy engagement, and with the aim of garnering support for government policy on migration.”

“This constitutes a technical infringement of the rules. As you know, the document was a draft Written Ministerial Statement about migration, due for publication imminently. Much of it had already been briefed to MPs. Nevertheless, it is right for me to go.”

“As soon as I realised my mistake, I rapidly reported this on official channels, and informed the Cabinet Secretary. As Home Secretary, I hold myself to the highest standards and my resignation is the right thing to do. The business of government relies upon people accepting responsibility for their mistakes.”

“Pretending we haven't made mistakes, carrying on as if everyone can't see that we have made them, and hoping that things will magically come right is not serious politics. I have made a mistake; I accept responsibility; I resign.” 

Suella's statement on taking responsibility for her mistakes comes at a time when Truss is facing criticism for her economic decisions that left the markets in panic and has shrugged off hints to demit office. 

Also read | Liz Truss says 'I am not a quitter' as calls for her resignation grow in UK

Braverman’s departure would likely threaten the stability of the Conservative government, which has been striving to put up a brave face following mini-budget U-turns and economic turmoil.

Also read | UK inflation accelerates to 40-year high amid rising food prices

Last week, Braverman, the Indian-origin former minister, stoked a controversy when she said that a trade deal with India would increase migration to the UK when Indians already represented the largest group of visa overstayers.

“I have concerns about having an open borders migration policy with India because I don’t think that’s what people voted for with Brexit,” Braverman had told The Spectator weekly news magazine.

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