Leadsom sends PM reshuffle warning

Minister speaks out against ‘male-dominated’ environments as Johnson prepares Cabinet changes

ANDREA LEADSOM has warned of the drawbacks of “male-dominated” workplaces ahead of a Cabinet reshuffle in which Boris Johnson is expected to sack up to five female ministers.

The Business Secretary, who believes her own job is among those under threat, has said that diversity is key to “excellence” in decision-making.

Writing in today’s Daily Telegraph in what will be interpreted as a shot across the Prime Minister’s bows, Mrs Leadsom says gender equality should be “the absolute norm”.

There are only eight women among the 31 ministers at Cabinet. Baroness Morgan, the Culture Secretary, has confirmed she is to stand down, and five others are seen as vulnerable.

Senior Whitehall sources suggested Mr Johnson is prepared to cut the number of women in the Cabinet as part of a reshuffle based on merit rather than gender, but believes he can take the sting out by increasing the number of women in the Government overall.

Mrs Leadsom makes her comments in an article celebrating an increase in the number of women on the boards of FTSE 100 companies, but sources close to the minister say her beliefs about the need for gender balance apply as much to government as they do to business.

The former party leadership contender writes: “Working in the City in the Nineties, I saw for myself how a male-dominated environment can limit a career … it would be much better if we just didn’t have to talk about diversity any more; if equality was the absolute norm.” She adds: “For some, diversity … is now their watchword, not for its own sake, but because of the excellence that a diverse range of views bring to decision-making.”

Mrs Leadsom is reported to have held crisis talks with other women in the Cabinet in what has been dubbed “the new pizza club”, a reference to the meetings she convened of Cabinet Brexiteers determined to stop Theresa May pursuing a “soft” Brexit.

Her article will be seen as a reminder to Mr Johnson of the need for women’s voices around the Cabinet table.

This weekend, the Prime Minister will finalise his reshuffle at Chequers. Mrs Leadsom is joined on the danger list by Thérèse Coffey, the Work and Pensions Secretary, Theresa Villiers, the Environment Secretary, housing minister Esther Mcvey and Liz Truss, the International Trade Secretary.

The only women in the Cabinet regarded as safe are Priti Patel, the Home Secretary, and Baroness Evans, Leader of the House of Lords.

While Mrs Leadsom, Ms Coffey and Ms Villiers are seen as near-certainties for the axe, Ms Truss may be encouraged by positive comments from Mr Johnson in his Brexit speech at Greenwich earlier in the week.

Others seen as vulnerable include Geoffrey Cox, the Attorney General, and Ben Wallace, the Defence Secre- tary. Jacob Rees-mogg, the Leader of the House of Commons, had been tipped for demotion after being told to stay out of the limelight during the election campaign, but sources suggest he may cling on. Oliver Dowden, Paymaster General, is backed for promotion to culture secretary.

Those expected to be given increased responsibilities may include Michael Gove, the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, and Rishi Sunak, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury.

Along with Ms Patel, Sajid Javid, the Chancellor, and Dominic Raab, the Foreign Secretary, are also expected to keep their current jobs.

AS AN amateur artist who sketches and poses in life drawing classes, Chloe Smith is a woman with an eye for detail.

It is a trait that has earned her huge respect in her role as parliamentary secretary for the Cabinet Office, where she has become the Government’s goto expert on the constitution. Now Ms

Smith is being tipped by senior colleagues for promotion to the Cabinet at the age of 37, to help Boris Johnson force through the Whitehall changes he wants in the next two years.

It is an open secret in Downing Street that Mr Johnson would like to demote up to six female Cabinet ministers, putting capable women like Ms Smith at a premium. At Chequers this weekend, he will finalise the lineup of his new Cabinet. He is insistent that Cabinet ministers must earn their place based on ability, not gender, and aides have made it clear that the number of women in the Cabinet could fall. Baroness Morgan of Cotes will stand down as Culture Secretary, having agreed to stay only until the reshuffle after her move to the Lords. Others regarded as vulnerable are Andrea Leadsom, the Business Secretary; Theresa Villiers, the Environment Secretary; Thérèse Coffey, the Work and Pensions Secretary; Liz Truss, the International Trade Secretary; and Esther Mcvey, the housing minister.

Of the eight women currently in Cabinet, only Priti Patel, the Home Secretary, and Baroness Evans, the Leader of the Lords, are regarded as safe.

Ms Smith, who has held three ministerial posts during her 11 years in Parliament, backed Mr Johnson for the Tory leadership and is viewed as a “solid performer” who could attend Cabinet as minister for the constitution.

Mr Johnson and Dominic Cummings, his chief aide, are planning “seismic” changes to the Civil Service, according to Rachel Wolf, who cowrote the Tory manifesto.

Ms Smith campaigned for Remain,

‘Cummings told a meeting of ministerial aides: “I’ll see some of you next week”’

but Mr Johnson is said to be open to the idea of bringing more Remainers into the Cabinet to move on from Brexit and bring his party together.

Victoria Atkins, the women’s minister and also a Home Office minister, is perhaps the most widely tipped female MP for a Cabinet role.

Meanwhile, Lucy Frazer QC, currently the prisons minister, is seen as a safe pair of hands and came to public attention last year by proposing a new law to make “upskirting” an offence.

Mr Johnson told ministers he was prepared to soak up criticism for reducing the number of women in the Cabinet and believed he could justify the move by increasing the number of women in Government overall.

Currently 38 of the 109 paid ministerial roles are held by women, and by promoting junior female ministers to minister of state level – one below Cab

inet level – Mr Johnson would be able to rebalance the Cabinet at his next reshuffle in around two years’ time.

Junior ministers who could become ministers of state include Helen Whately, the under-secretary of state for arts, heritage and tourism; Kemi Badenoch, the children’s minister; and Nusrat Ghani, a transport minister.

Mr Johnson could also decide to trim the number of ministers at Cabinet. Among those who could keep their jobs but lose their Cabinet status are Ms Mcvey and Jake Berry, the northern powerhouse minister.

Among the outside bets for a return to Cabinet are Maria Miller, a former culture secretary, and Penny Mordaunt, the defence secretary until last year.

Last night, Mr Cummings told a meeting of ministerial aides: “I’ll

see some of you next week.”