Minister points new cabinet
by Group,
Former Mayor of London Boris Johnson has been
appointed as the Foreign Secretary by Britain’s new Prime
Minister, Theresa May, a report said on Thursday.
Until now a back-bencher, the promotion will cascade
Johnson onto the world stage.
Johnson served as Mayor of London from 2008 until this
year when he was replaced by Sadiq Khan.
He was elected last year as MP for Uxbridge and South
Ruislip, but had served previously as an MP from 2001,
resigning in 2008 when he became Mayor of London.
He has taken over the job from Philip Hammond who has
replaced George Osborne as Chancellor of the Exchequer.
May has also created a new cabinet job, Secretary of State
for Brexit, likely to be called the Brexit Secretary, tasked
with steering Britain out of Europe following last month’s
referendum vote.
The job has been handed to David Davis who has
previously served as a Europe Minister. Current Defense
Secretary Michael Fallon has kept his job.
After Cameron resigned as prime minister following the
Remain camp’s defeat in the EU referendum, Johnson had
been tipped as a favorite to replace him at 10 Downing
Street.
However, on the day nominations closed Johnson caused
a shock by announcing he had decided not to stand in the
leadership contest.
Hammond was the first cabinet member to be announced
by May, naming him as her next door neighbor at 11
Downing Street.
Hammond had served as foreign secretary in Cameron’s
cabinet, but he has had previous experience of a Treasury
role.
George Osborne, Chancellor of the Exchequer in David
Cameron’s cabinet, has resigned from the government.
This was a shock as new Prime Minister Theresa May
started the task of appointing her own front bench team.
For Hammond, the job means a return to the
Conservative’s Treasury team where he previously served
as Shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury.
In 2007 he became Shadow Chief Secretary to the
Treasury.
Amber Rudd, Energy Secretary under Cameron, has taken
over May’s old job as Home Secretary.
She was only given a front bench job a year ago when she
became Secretary of State for Energy and Climate
Change.
