Wish you were here, Dom? Liz stakes claim to ‘shared’ mansion
LIZ Truss stepped up her tussle with Dominic Raab over the use of the Foreign Secretary’s mansion yesterday as she posed for photographs at the graceand-favour residence.
Despite being demoted from the role in last month’s reshuffle, Mr Raab is seeking to retain Chevening.
He was moved to the Ministry of Justice – and given the title of Deputy Prime Minister to soften the blow.
The 115-room property in Kent would normally be expected to go to his successor, Miss Truss, but Mr Raab believes his new role allows him to keep it.
Yesterday at Chevening, the Foreign Secretary hosted her counterparts from Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, Gabrielius Landsbergis, Edgars Rinkevics and Eva-Maria Liimets.
However, No10 insisted no decision had been made on who would get use of the property in the long term.
Mr Raab faced further humiliation yesterday as No10 said that despite his new title he was not running the UK during Boris Johnson’s holiday in Spain. The Prime Minister’s spokesman said Mr Raab had ‘an important role’ as Deputy PM, but insisted Mr Johnson remained ‘in charge’.
The Chevening Estate Act of 1959 states that the Prime Minister decides the ‘nominated person’ to occupy the 17th century mansion in Sevenoaks, which is set in 3,000 acres. Its gardens include a tennis court, a lake, a maze, a parterre and woodlands.
It is not the first time ministers have clashed over access to the estate. Deputy PM Nick Clegg, then Lib Dem leader, and Tory foreign secretary William Hague shared Chevening in a ‘joint tenancy’ in the Coalition.
Mr Johnson eventually became the ‘prime nominee’ to the mansion as foreign secretary in 2016.