Rishi Sunalk
David Cameron makes shock comeback in high-risk reshuffle
Ex-PM’s appointment as foreign secretary indicates a move to the centre by Rishi Sunak and is likely to anger the right of the party
David Cameron has made a stunning political comeback as Rishi Sunak’s foreign secretary in a cabinet reshuffle in which Suella Braverman was sacked as home secretary.
The prime minister, who pledged to be the “change candidate” at the Conservative conference just a month ago, turned to his centrist predecessor on Monday to help close the gap with Labour as he confirmed the ministerial team expected to lead the party into the next election.
Sunak moved James Cleverly, a moderate who was foreign secretary, to the Home Office, and confirmed that Jeremy Hunt would stay as chancellor, in a clear shift towards the centre ground that alarmed some on the right of the party.
Cameron, who has kept a relatively low public profile since quitting as prime minister after the 2016 Brexit vote, said: “I’ve decided to join this team because I believe Rishi Sunak is a good prime minister doing a difficult job at a hard time. I want to support him.”
The former Tory leader, who has been made a life peer, said that although he had “disagreed with some individual decisions” by Sunak’s government, “politics is a team enterprise”.
The reshuffle, which represents a shift towards securing the Tory base in southern blue wall seats, even if it costs them votes in the northern “red wall”, is probably a last throw of the dice for Sunak. The party is trailing Labour by more than 20 points and the government is under pressure from its own MPs to cut taxes in next week’s autumn statement, a move made less likely by Hunt’s remaining at the Treasury.
Cameron’s return, which sources said had been facilitated by the Tory former leader William Hague, comes with baggage – including his role leading the remain campaign and how that will be viewed by a party now overwhelmingly pro-Brexit. His role as the architect of austerity, which left many of Britain’s public services crippled and its welfare system diminished, is also likely to face renewed scrutiny.
Allies said he was expecting to face criticism over his business dealings with China since leaving government, as well as his position on UK-China cooperation, which went through a “golden era” during his administration, something Sunak described as “naive” last year after growing tensions with Beijing. Lire la suite »
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