Weakened May limps into delicate Brexit talks

LONDON: Sexual harassment scandals, resignations, splits: Britain’s government is looking increasingly fragile at a time when it should be operating at full throttle for Brexit negotiations,

The political backbiting in the corridors of power has provided a boon for cartoonists, who have mocked Prime Minister Theresa May since she lost her parliamentary majority in a

The on Thursday showed an angry-looking May sitting at an empty

The Steve Bell published a cartoon entitled “Britain ministers clothed in clownish

“The government gets weaker by

“I do think the most likely outcome is that Theresa May will still be prime minister by the end of the year but

‘Out of control?’

The Brexit referendum last year introduced an unprecedented volatility in British politics with

Tensions within May’s Conservative party have grown further since the election, even as Britain embarked on its most important negotiations since World War II, to abandon the

In the past fortnight a string of non-Brexit scandals have shaken her government, leading to two ministe

Defense Secretary Michael Fallon resigned over sexual harassment allegations and International Development Secretary Priti Patel was forced to step down on Wednesday after her unauthorized meetings in

May’s Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson has also faced calls to resign after a blunder over an Iranian-British

“Patel’s resignation highlights how Usherwood, a politics lecturer at the

Not only did May allow Patel to resign instead of sacking her, but she also “seems bound to replace her with another pro-Brexit individual rather than someone who might have the skills needed for

“How many more ministers can she lose before the party decides

May later on Thursday promoted Brexit campaigner and junior minister Penny Mordaunt

‘Rage and resentment’

Many experts believe the government is not in immediate danger of collapsing, mainly because there is no clear alternative

Even her critics appear to be holding fire at a delicate moment for Brexit, ahead of a December summit at which Britain is hoping EU leaders will give the go-ahead for talks on

- ential Conservative website ConservativeHome, noted the government still has a formal majority in parliament thanks to an agreement with the

“The next election is five years

But he added: “All of this is not say that the government is in a good place, or that it has a coherent plan to escape from it, or that Theresa May’s

The state of the government in Britain is also being viewed with

- cerned about what we are seeing in the UK at the moment, we want a

‘Bemusement’

If May were forced to step down, it would “delay a deal on Article 50 Grant said, referring to the Brexit withdrawal agreement and a deal

He said the current political situation was being viewed with “they don’t really understand what’s

In an article entitled “No One

bureau chief Steven Erlanger this week sounded a despondent note about a

columnist Philip Stephens also said the tensions were

“Renowned for solidity and pragmatism, the Brits have fallen to rage

Brexit “is being steered, if that is the right word, by an administration drained of political authority by a misjudged election and by a Conservative party at war with