View Full Version : Penny Mordaunt Sacked
Penny Mordaunt just tweeted she is off to the back benches. Word awaited on new Defence Secretary.
https://twitter.com/pennymordaunt/status/1154054783835107328?s=21
Archimedes
24th Jul 2019, 15:57
Sacked or resigned? The speculation that her job was being offered to others may well have prompted her to jump ship - I don't think Boris has started appointing the cabinet yet, so it'd be odd for her to be sacked ahead of the Chancellor's job being filled.
Lyneham Lad
24th Jul 2019, 16:07
Johnson apparently offered the post J Hunt - who declined the move as he viewed it as a 'lesser post'. If the new PM goes around offering your post to others, why not go with dignity. Anyway, a crying shame as Mordaunt seemed to be settling in and doing a good job.
Capt Kremmen
24th Jul 2019, 17:18
Not up to it I'm afraid - she appears to lack backbone. Neither was she up to it when in charge of the Foreign Aid budget. She had a piece published in to-days D. Tel. which markedly lacked a mention of 'national commitment' eg. more backbone and less appeasement when dealing with the likes of Iran.
The less said the better about J. Hunt's espousal of a European Maritime defence force with which to confront the Iranians.
Finningley Boy
24th Jul 2019, 17:25
What's the betting Gavin Williamson will get the Defence portfolio back?!
FB
Capt Kremmen
24th Jul 2019, 17:50
You're probably right which begs the question;: is this country so really deficient in those able politicians whose comments do not from time to time give at least some of our likely opponents an attack of the giggles.
Chris Kebab
24th Jul 2019, 17:51
Not up to it I'm afraid - she appears to lack backbone. Neither was she up to it when in charge of the Foreign Aid budget. She had a piece published in to-days D. Tel. which markedly lacked a mention of 'national commitment' eg. more backbone and less appeasement when dealing with the likes of Iran.
The less said the better about J. Hunt's espousal of a European Maritime defence force with which to confront the Iranians.
Well we are obviously not capable of doing it on our own.
nicolai
24th Jul 2019, 18:31
Now it's Ben Wallace in this hot seat.
Any opinions on him?
Wiki:
”Aged 19, Wallace attended the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_Military_Academy_Sandhurst), before being commissioned as a platoon commander (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Platoon_commander) into the Scots Guards (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scots_Guards). During his eight-year army career until 1998 he served in Northern Ireland, Germany, Cyprus and Central America.[3] (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ben_Wallace_(politician)#cite_note-govuk-bio-3) His last role was as Company Commander of F Coy Scots Guards.[citation needed (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed)]
From 2003 to 2005 he was overseas director of QinetiQ (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/QinetiQ), the UK's former Defence Evaluation and Research Agency (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Defence_Evaluation_and_Research_Agency) (DERA).[2] (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ben_Wallace_(politician)#cite_note-guardian-bio-2)“
Melchett01
24th Jul 2019, 20:20
Well there’s not much Light Blue at all in the senior echelons these days, either in the Ministerial team (all Army) or senior Staff (mostly Army, some Navy) with only Knighton as DCDS(FinMil Cap).
Wont be holding out much hope for the next few years, but on the plus side we’ll all be wearing dashing red moleskin trousers by Christmas!
Wee Weasley Welshman
24th Jul 2019, 21:12
In the Mess, not well liked.
Asturias56
25th Jul 2019, 09:04
If I had a majority of 2 I'd think hard before running off 15 people ...........................
Brian W May
25th Jul 2019, 15:56
If I had a majority of 2 I'd think hard before running off 15 people ...........................
I think you might find his majority increases.
VinRouge
25th Jul 2019, 17:18
I think you might find his majority increases.
i think you you will find he will be out on his @rse and a unity government across 4-5 parties are going to skewer this madness.
His clear out of the cabinet has made a lot of enemies and even with tactical voting between the conservatives and
Brexit party, there is not enough support to stop a remain unity government from tearing up brexit.
His majority won’t see first light once the north realise they have been lied to. Already talk of no immigration target other than points and open doors to everyone already here. Nothing wrong with that but the loons he is associated with won’t get their backing in the heartlands. This was the key issue during the Brexit campaign.
i think you you will find he will be out on his @rse and a unity government across 4-5 parties are going to skewer this madness.
His clear out of the cabinet has made a lot of enemies and even with tactical voting between the conservatives and
Brexit party, there is not enough support to stop a remain unity government from tearing up brexit.
His majority won’t see first light once the north realise they have been lied to. Already talk of no immigration target other than points and open doors to everyone already here. Nothing wrong with that but the loons he is associated with won’t get their backing in the heartlands. This was the key issue during the Brexit campaign.
I'll guess you voted "Remain" then Eh?
Chugalug2
25th Jul 2019, 21:08
I've often wondered which side I'd have chosen (or had chosen for me) in the English Civil War. The Parliamentary troops were victorious of course and the better of the two militarily, but what a bunch of killjoys! Some things never change...
BATCO
26th Jul 2019, 05:36
I've often wondered which side I'd have chosen (or had chosen for me) in the English Civil War. The Parliamentary troops were victorious of course and the better of the two militarily, but what a bunch of killjoys! Some things never change...
Often summarised as "Cavaliers, wrong but romantic: Roundheads, right but repulsive".
Batco
The Oberon
26th Jul 2019, 07:06
Bit of a delicate but serious question. Jeremy Hunt has a Chinese wife, would he have been given the clearances to do Defence?
London Eye
26th Jul 2019, 07:14
Bit of a delicate but serious question. Jeremy Hunt has a Chinese wife, would he have been given the clearances to do Defence?
If he had the clearances to be Foreign Secretary then yes...
The Oberon
26th Jul 2019, 07:16
If he had the clearances to be Foreign Secretary then yes...
Good point, thanks.
Melchett01
26th Jul 2019, 08:07
Bit of a delicate but serious question. Jeremy Hunt has a Chinese wife, would he have been given the clearances to do Defence?
And which is probably why Williamson is now at Education - as far as the keepers of the secrets are concerned be likely represented too much of a risk to be given anything more sensitive than a board duster.
But as well as Hunt, you've got a US born PM whose great grandfather was Turkish and a Chancellor and Home Sec who both are only 1st generation UK and had they been in the military would have struggled to get clearances for more sensitive branches. That said, Ministers don't have formal clearances in the same way we do - Mordaunt was an exception given her role in the Navy Reserves. To make them get clearances would be seen as the Administration having power over elected Executives. I get that, but it does entail a degree of risk.
thunderbird7
26th Jul 2019, 08:34
Bit of a delicate but serious question. Jeremy Hunt has a Chinese wife, would he have been given the clearances to do Defence?
I thought she was Japanese...... :8
NutLoose
26th Jul 2019, 09:02
To Prince Philip that wouldn't matter, they all look the same...
Lucia, who originally is from China married her Tory MP husband in a traditional Chinese ceremony 10 years ago.
And the confusion comes from
Mr Hunt made an embarrassing gaffe during a trip to China in which he said his wife is Japanese
Makes you worry when he does not even remember where his wife is from!
https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/6896899/jeremy-hunt-wife-lucia-guo/
The amount that have been through the doors of the Defence Ministry, I wonder if the door name plates are now mounted on velcro.
Asturias56
26th Jul 2019, 09:11
IIRC all the major post war UK spies were all English born & bred?
And they all went to Cambridge???
Of ocurse if you've read Robt Harris's book (and movie) the Ghost you might look very closely at a certain PM's wife...................... :E
AARON O'DICKYDIDO
26th Jul 2019, 10:04
Johnson apparently offered the post J Hunt - who declined the move as he viewed it as a 'lesser post'. If the new PM goes around offering your post to others, why not go with dignity. Anyway, a crying shame as Mordaunt seemed to be settling in and doing a good job.
There was a time when Defence, Home Office and Foreign Office were considered to be the BIG 3. How times have changed!
Aaron.
NutLoose
26th Jul 2019, 11:33
Anyway, a crying shame as Mordaunt seemed to be settling in and doing a good job.
Surely she hadn't been there long enough to really effect anything and was still riding on the accomplishments of her predecessor.
Davef68
26th Jul 2019, 12:25
There was a time when Defence, Home Office and Foreign Office were considered to be the BIG 3. How times have changed!
Aaron.
Surely the big three were Chancellor, Home Secretary and Foreign Secretary, with Defence being just below that tier?
Home Secretary lost some of it's functions to Justice, but would still be regarded as one of the Great Offices of State.
(Incidentally, you don't even need to be a member of either House of Parliament to hold Ministerial Office - Alex Douglas Hume sat as Prime Minister for a few weeks in 1964 after renouncing his Peerage, but before he was elected as an MP)
Re security concerns, I'm sure there have been cases in the past where PMs have been advised not to appoint certain people to certain roles, but the decision must always remain with the Prime Minister
Defence minister Tobias Ellwood sacked in reshuffleIt looks like Tobias Ellwood has been sacked. Ellwood, a defence minister, said at the weekend that a no deal Brexit could plunge the Tories into opposition for an awfully long period of time. (https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/boris-johnson-brexit-no-deal-tory-leadership-labour-tobias-ellwood-a9014491.html) But two days later he said he would not be resigning from government. (https://www.theguardian.com/politics/live/2019/jul/23/boris-johnson-tory-leadership-theresa-may-politics-live?page=with:block-5d36f8468f08cf92bb7754c2#block-5d36f8468f08cf92bb7754c2)
Now he is out. He has posted this on Twitter.
https://twitter.com/Tobias_Ellwood/status/1154752915682316289
The final line of his tweet, “Si vis pacem, para bellum”, means “If you want peace, prepare for war”. Whether that is a comment on defence spending, or on relations with Downing Street, remains to be seen.
Ellwood was honoured for his bravery (https://www.heraldscotland.com/news/15182022.westminster-terror-attack-queen-honours-hero-tory-mp-tobias-ellwood-who-battled-to-save-stabbed-police-officer-keith-palmer/) after he intervened to try to save the life of PC Keith Palmer, the police officer killed in the Westminster terror attack in 2017.
Asturias56
26th Jul 2019, 15:44
"here was a time when Defence, Home Office and Foreign Office were considered to be the BIG 3. How times have changed! "
The last powerful DefSec was Healey - and that wasn't so much because the Labour party thought it was important but because he basically refused to be moved so after about 5 years he'd outlasted all the senior Civil Servants and knew all their dodges and where the Treasury had buried the bodies
Like him or loathe him Gordon Brown achieved much the same as Chancellor - the UK Civil Service LOVE reshuffles as they got a constant stream of people who haven't a clue what the job is all about
Headstone
26th Jul 2019, 16:00
Absolutely true Asturias56 - We have all seen enough episodes of that documentary series Yes Minister/Yes Prime Minister which tried to make us all believe it was actually a comedy programme!
Melchett01
26th Jul 2019, 16:50
For a PM with a majority of 2, possibly 1 in coming days - even with the DUP on board, he’s being very bold. At this rate he could well be the shortest lived PM counted in weeks at most.
Asturias56
27th Jul 2019, 08:07
yes - firing 15 people looks a bit dumb................
BluSdUp
27th Jul 2019, 11:50
Wee W Welshman.
So he was not well liked in the Mess!!
Good, as that is not were wars are won. Only promotions , some times, I suppose.
As I recall Monty was not a popular man either, but a true Soldier.
If You are hired to cull Russians, ultimately, You need to know You Soldiering!!
Does He?
I think he stands a good chance compared to some of todays utterly clue-less Defence Ministers.
How one can be Defense Minister and not even have finished the Draft has always been a mystery to me.
So
WWW
Is he a competent Officer or not, popularity contest in the " Mess" aside!!
Regards
Cpt B
Asturias56
27th Jul 2019, 16:37
There is absolutely no reason why the Minister should have served in the Forces..................
I believe it was Count Bismark who observed he was totally happy to have his horse pull his carriage but he didn't see the sense in letting it decide where to go...............
FantomZorbin
28th Jul 2019, 10:48
Sorry Asturias56, I couldn't disagree with you more. IMHO as a serviceman, I want the person in charge to not only know what it is they are talking about but to understand as well … two different concepts.
tucumseh
28th Jul 2019, 14:04
Oddly, no Parliamentary Under Secy of State for Defence People and Veterans has been appointed yet. Job covers Covenant, Inquests, Inquiries, Cadets, Sustainability, Justice, Safety, Security......... Good job pprune has the handover brief covered then.
Timelord
28th Jul 2019, 14:41
Sorry Asturias56, I couldn't disagree with you more. IMHO as a serviceman, I want the person in charge to not only know what it is they are talking about but to understand as well … two different concepts.
Sure, I would like that too, but I suppose that doctors would want the Health Secretary to be a doctor, teachers would want the Education Secretary to be a teacher and so on. Never been the case in Brit governments.
jindabyne
28th Jul 2019, 15:00
Timelord. Aye, but everyone has experienced both health and education - in various degrees. Not so with defence.
PlasticCabDriver
28th Jul 2019, 16:02
Just someone who can actually understand the brief, ask sensible questions/take sensible actions based on the answers, adequately defend their corner against the Treasury and be free of the single-service rivalries that inevitably infest the most senior echelons would be nice.
slack
28th Jul 2019, 16:32
The boris show will be head and shoulders above the series Yes Prime Minster. The world is laughing while holding its breath. I am sure the Queen is not amused. The Duke is probably saying "who is this Boris bloke"
Comment from the colony (Canada)
I'll close the door on my way out.
alwayslookingup
29th Jul 2019, 21:53
Now it's Ben Wallace in this hot seat.
Any opinions on him?
Ben Wallace was the Tory candidate for West Aberdeenshire & Kincardine in the first elections to the inaugural Scottish Parliament in 1999. He was beaten into second place by a Liberal, who had been an Education Officer in the Army. However, he gained a seat through the 2nd vote list part of the Election. I think he served one term as it was quite clearly a stepping stone to the UK Parliament. I met Wallace a couple of times. Came across as a bit "Tim, nice but dim". He did let slip that upon leaving the Army he thought he'd "give this politics thing a try". I guess it worked out for him.