Every word a stiletto... what those letters mean
THE CHANCELLOR and Health Secretary quit with an excoriating blast at Boris Johnson over standards and competence last night, but aides insisted it was not a co-ordinated putsch.
Rishi Sunak and Sajid Javid announced they were resigning within nine minutes of each other – just as the Prime Minister was giving a televised statement apologising for the Chris Pincher row.
In a brutal parting shot, Mr Javid said he had lost confidence in the PM and suggested the Government was no longer ‘competent’.
Mr Sunak said he had ‘reluctantly come to the conclusion that we cannot continue like this’ and that people expected government to be ‘conducted properly, competently and seriously’.
He also hinted at a split with the Prime Minister over economic policy, saying it has ‘become clear to me that our approaches are fundamentally too different’.
Mr Sunak’s resignation letter came just nine minutes after Mr Javid’s at 6.11pm – but sources close to the pair insist their departures are not a joint coup.
Their resignations came less than a fortnight after Oliver Dowden quit as Conservative Party chairman following a double by-election defeat. A string of other less seismic resignations followed last night, including two Parliamentary Private Secretaries.
Mr Javid had been a friend of the PM’s wife Carrie Johnson who he employed as a special adviser while he was Communities Secretary.
But his resignation yesterday was the second time he has quit Mr Johnson’s government, after resigning as Chancellor in February 2020 over an order to fire his team of aides.
Mr Javid announced his resignation on Twitter at 6.02pm after speaking to the PM. He said he could not continue as health secretary ‘in good conscience’ and suggested he PM should quit too.
In a devasating letter, Mr Javid wrote: ‘The tone you set as a leader, and the values you represent, reflect on your colleagues, your party and ultimately the country.
Conservatives at their best are seen as hard-headed decisionmakers, guided by strong values. We may not have always been popular, but we have been competent in acting in the national interest.
‘Sadly, in the current circumstances, the public are concluding that we are now neither. The vote of confidence last month showed that a large number of our colleagues agree. It was a moment for humility, grip and new direction.
‘I regret to say, however, that it is clear to me that this situation will not change under your leadership – and you have therefore lost my confidence too.’
While relations between No10
‘You have lost my confidence too’
and no11 had become strained in recent months, Mr Sunak had stood by Mr Johnson over Partygate and they were due to make a speech on the economy this week.
That changed with the Chancellor quitting. In his resignation letter Mr Sunak said: ‘To leave ministerial office is a serious matter at any time. The public rightly expect government to be conducted properly, competently and seriously. I recognise this may be my last ministerial job, but I believe these standards are worth fighting for and that is why I am resigning.’
Tory vice chair Bim Afolami later quit live on TV, Andrew Murrison resigned as a trade envoy to
Morocco and ministerial aides Jonathan gullis and Saqib Bhatti left their roles.
The PM responded to Rishi Sunak’s departure, saying he was ‘sorry’ to have received his resignation and praised his ‘outstanding service’. In a letter, the PM wrote: ‘I have enormously valued your advice and deep commitment to public service and will miss working with you in government.’
In a brief letter, the PM told the former health secretary: ‘Dear Saj, Thank you for your letter this evening tendering your resignation. I was very sorry to receive it.’ He said he had served ‘ with distinction’.