Rising stars
THERESA May hailed a “new generation” of rising Tory stars yesterday after completing her reshuffle.
The Prime Minister promoted a string of female and ethnic minority MPs to junior frontbench roles in a drive to make her Government “reflect the country it serves”.
And she strengthened her team leading the effort to pull Britain out of the EU by appointing an extra minister at the Brexit department.
Suella Fernandes, previously the leader of an influential group of Eurosceptic backbenchers, was handed the role in a move that cheered Brexit supporters on the Tory benches.
Other female MPs promoted on the second day of the reshuffle included Caroline Dinenage, Margot James, Harriett Baldwin, Lucy Frazer and Nusrat Ghani.
Mark Garnier – recently cleared of allegations of inappropriate behaviour after being caught up in the Westminster sex harassment scandal – was sacked as trade minister.
Downing Street sources insisted the scandal surrounding Mr Garnier had nothing to do with his departure.
Robert Goodwill, who had been an education minister, was also axed in the reshuffle.
And junior ministers John Hayes and Philip Dunne resigned yesterday, giving up jobs in the transport and health briefs respectively.
Minorities
Mrs May said she wanted to build a country “that truly works for everyone, with a stronger economy and a fairer society”.
As she completed her New Year reshuffle last night, she added: “It also allows a new generation of gifted ministers to step up and make life better for people across the whole UK.”
However, some Tories were concerned that experienced male ministers were being unfairly sacrificed in the positive discrimination drive.
Tory MP Philip Davies said there was “a legitimate concern that some people may feel they have been hoofed out or not promoted simply because they are a white male”.
Downing Street rejected Mr Davies’s criticism of the reshuffle, saying it was “absolutely not” the case that ministers were being chosen for the axe because they are male and white.
The Prime Minister’s spokesman said: “This is a reshuffle intended to build a team which can take on the challenges this country faces and deliver on the Government’s priorities of housing, school standards, NHS improvement and environment.”
He added: “It’s important the Government reflects the country it represents. It is also important the country has a government that can deliver for the British public.”
MPs from ethnic minorities joining ministerial ranks yesterday included Rishi Sunak, Nadhim Zahawi and Shailesh Vara while Alok Sharma and Sam Gyimah were promoted.
Other rising stars promoted yesterday included Dominic Raab, Jo Johnson and Stephen Barclay.
In a signal of her determination to stamp out tolerance of sexual harassment at Westminster, the Prime Minister appointed a string of women to the whips office. They included Kelly Tolhurst, Mims Davies, Amanda Milling, Jo Churchill and Wendy Morton.
But Mrs May faced further criticism from some Tories last night.
One MP said the shake-up, which dragged on as some ministers resisted job shifts, was “the worst reshuffle I have ever witnessed”. Another backbencher said: “She ended the year in not a bad place, to the point where she was making a virtue of her ability