May backs Boris over NHS cash:
THERESA MAY has agreed with Boris Johnson’s calls for extra NHS funding from the “Brexit dividend”, but gave him an extraordinary dressing-down in front of ministers for briefing the idea to the media as Cabinet tensions resurfaced.
The Prime Minister said the NHS would be a “top priority” for the money Britain will save once it stops paying into the EU budget, but stopped short of promising the £100million per week the Foreign Secretary had wanted her to pledge.
Allies of Mr Johnson said Mrs May’s comments showed that the Foreign Secretary had “won the argument” on the need to show the public a tangible benefit of Brexit. But Downing Street said Mrs May had already promised that Brexit would mean more money for the NHS, along with other priorities such as housing and schools.
Mr Johnson paid a heavy price for his intervention, as up to eight senior ministers chided him for briefing the media, rather than discussing the matter in Cabinet or leaving it to Jeremy Hunt, the Health Secretary.
Amber Rudd, the Home Secretary, is understood to have spoken of the need for Cabinet ministers to be able to trust each other, adding: “I’m talking to you, Foreign Secretary.”
The Prime Minister’s official spokesman issued an almost unprecedented public rebuke, saying: “The Prime Minister and a large number of Cabinet ministers made the point that Cabinet discussions should take place in private.”
One minister said Mrs May had given Mr Johnson a verbal “slap – not once but twice” in what was described as a distinctly “frosty” meeting.
The Foreign Secretary was also accused of “testing the water” for a future leadership bid, but by trying to show voters that he has a clearer and more positive vision than Mrs May of the benefits of Brexit.
Sources close to Mr Johnson insisted he remains fully supportive of the Prime Minister. One ally said: “It’s good that the NHS is back on top of the agenda. That is a win for him.”
Anna Soubry, a former minister and prominent Remain campaigner, said Mr Johnson had shown “long-standing incompetence and disloyalty” and called for his sacking, saying that unless the Prime Minister acted now “Boris will bring her down”.
Chris Grayling, the Transport Secretary, and Michael Gove, the Environment Secretary, had been expected to back Mr Johnson, but also criticised his tactics, suggesting he had given Jeremy Corbyn plenty of ammunition for today’s Prime Minister’s Questions.
‘A large number of Cabinet ministers made the point that Cabinet discussions should take place in private’