New UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak sparked controversy this evening shortly after he began assembling his team, over the addition of Suella Braverman as Home Office Secretary of State. The hard-line interior minister resigned last week due to a technical breach of government rules. British newspapers were rumored to have been asked to resign.
Ms. Braverman – an outspoken critic of the economic policies of Rishi Sunak’s predecessor Liz Truss – supported Mr. Sunak in last week’s election. “We need unity, stability and efficiency. Rishi Sunak is the only candidate that fits the bill and I am proud to support him,” she wrote in The Daily Telegraph.
News of her re-appointment on the Prime Minister’s official twitter attracted mostly negative comments. Many questioned how the Conservatives reappointed a leader who admitted a security breach. Others questioned her stance on policies – particularly on immigration control – that have provoked mixed reactions even within her party.
“The appointment of Suella Braverman as Home Secretary just days after she was fired for a security breach does not imply integrity, competence, professionalism or sound politics. It is just the way things are done. This prime minister is no better than the last two,” Labor MP Chris wrote on Twitter Bryant.
Ms Braverman, a London-born daughter to a Goan father and a Tamil mother, has expressed “conservation” about Britain’s trade deal with India.
In an interview, she said she feared the deal would increase migration to the UK, as Indians already represent the largest group of people who have overstayed their visas.
Earlier this month, she blamed the Leicester riots after the cricket match between India and Pakistan on uncontrolled migration into Britain and the inability to integrate new arrivals.
She also pledged to reduce illegal migration, vowing to clamp down on small boats that carry illegal migrants across the English Channel, “abusing” the UK’s asylum system.
She also committed to her predecessor Priti Patel a plan to deport illegal migrants to Rwanda. Ms. Patel has come up with a plan, but it has not been completely successful.
Suella Braverman was Justice Secretary in former Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s cabinet and found a key position in Liz Truss’ cabinet as Home Secretary.
She resigned last week, saying in her resignation letter that she sent an official document from her personal email address, in violation of department rules.
The letter also contained harsh criticisms of Liz Truss. Her government, writes Suella Braverman, “has broken important commitments made to voters”.
