Braverman return criticised
THE reappointment of Suella Braverman as the home secretary by prime minister Rishi Sunak sets a “dangerous precedent” for how breaches of the ministerial code are dealt with, a crossparty parliamentary panel said in a report last Friday (2).
Braverman, 42, had resigned from the cabinet of former prime minister Liz Truss, having breached the ministerial code by sending secure information from her private email. She was reappointed by Sunak on October 25, leading to growing calls for her resignation.
The House of Commons Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee said the situation was “unsatisfactory” and there needed to be a more “robust” system of upholding standards in public life.
“The reappointment of the home secretary sets a dangerous precedent,” the committee’s report said. “The leaking of restricted material is worthy of significant sanction under the new graduated sanctions regime introduced in May, including resignation and a significant period out of office. A subsequent change in prime minister should not wipe the slate clean and allow for a rehabilitation and a return to ministerial office in a shorter time frame.
“To allow this to take place does not inspire confidence in the integrity of the government nor offer much incentive to proper conduct in future,” it said.
Braverman had resigned on October 19, days before the exit of prime minister Truss.
Sunak previously defended Braverman’s reappointment to his so-called “unity Cabinet” bringing together different wings of the governing Tory party, saying the home secretary had “accepted her mistake”.
However, the Commons committee, called on the government to toughen the system regulating standards and ethical conduct, especially in the wake of scandals such as ‘Partygate’ – which involved Covid-19 law breaches.