British Prime Minister Johnson "has a fire in the backyard".
On Tuesday (July 5), Local time, British Health Minister Saeed Javid and Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak announced their resignations one after another, and both pointed the finger at Prime Minister Johnson.
British media reported that the Chancellor of the Exchequer and the Secretary of State for Health were key officials of the British government and that the resignations of Javid and Sunak had "taken a heavy toll" on the Johnson government.
Recently, Johnson has also been under pressure to resign from within the opposition and conservative parties over the "partygate" scandal.
On May 5, British Prime Minister and Conservative Leader Boris Johnson traveled to a polling station in London to prepare for the vote. Xinhua News Agency (Photo by Tim Ireland)
Loss of confidence in the Prime Minister
On the 5th local time, British Health Minister Saeed Javid and Finance Minister Rishi Sunak resigned from the government due to the loss of confidence in Prime Minister Johnson.
Javid said on social media that he had submitted his resignation to Prime Minister Johnson. Javid said it was a great honor to take on the role, but he regretted that he could not continue to work in good conscience.
In his resignation, Sunak said: "The public expects the government to manage the country correctly, competently and conscientiously. I believe these standards are worth fighting for, and our country is facing enormous challenges, which is why I resigned. ”
The new Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Minister of Health, was appointed quickly.
On the evening of July 5, local time, the British Prime Minister's Office announced the appointment of Nadim Zahawi to succeed Rishi Sunak, who had just resigned, as the new Chancellor of the Exchequer. Zahavi was previously British Secretary of State for Education.
In addition, Steve Buckley was appointed as the new Secretary of State for Health, replacing Saeed Javid, who had just resigned. Barkley was previously Johnson's chief of staff.
The vice party whip "salty pig hand" incident continued to ferment
British prime minister accused of "not telling the truth"
On July 5, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson publicly apologized for his unobtrusive appointment of Conservative Deputy Whip Christopher Pincher to the government office.
Johnson-appointed Conservative vice whip Christopher Pincher was exposed as a "salty pig hand" and resigned on June 30. However, Pincher was subsequently exposed to more misconduct, which raised questions about whether Johnson knew that his conduct was still entrusted with a heavy responsibility.
According to British media reports, Pincher molested two men at a club in the UK on June 29. When he resigned on the 30th, he said that he had drunk too much at that time, embarrassing himself and others.
The Prime Minister's Office initially said Johnson was unaware of specific reports of his misconduct before appointing Pincher in February. However, a spokesman for the Prime Minister's Office changed his tune on July 4, saying Johnson was aware of some of the designations against Pincher, but that the matters involved in those designations had either been resolved or had not developed into formal charges. In the absence of a formal complaint, "it would be inappropriate to suspend the appointment of Pincher on the basis of unfounded allegations".
On July 5, Simon Macdonald, a member of the upper house of the British Parliament and a senior diplomat, said: "The initial statement of 10 Downing Street (Prime Minister's Office) is untrue, and it is still inaccurate after changing its mouth. ”
McDonald said that shortly after Pincher was appointed minister of state for foreign affairs in the summer of 2019, multiple people identified him as misbehaving. The investigation that year identified this, and Pincher apologized and promised not to do it again.
"Johnson was personally briefed on the causes and outcomes of the investigation." McDonald wrote. He said that the Prime Minister's Office said that "the matter was settled" but that the investigation had been completed and that "Pingche was not found innocent, so it would be wrong to call those designations 'unfounded'".
British media reported that Pincher had been accused of misconduct on multiple occasions over the years. Angela Rayner, deputy head of the opposition Labour Party, said Johnson was desperately trying to hide his character before he appointed Pincher, but the truth has surfaced.
Deputy Prime Minister Dominique Raab said on the 5th that he did not know whether Johnson was informed of the relevant situation. When the 2019 investigation began, Raab was foreign secretary.
Previously, Johnson has been under pressure to resign from within the opposition and conservative parties due to the "partygate" scandal. On 6 June, Johnson passed a vote of no confidence in him by Conservative MPs and was able to remain as the head of the Conservative Party and the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. Still, more than 40 percent of Conservative MPs cast a vote of no confidence in that vote.
British Prime Minister Johnson passed the conservative vote of no confidence in him on the evening of June 6 Xinhua News Agency (Photo courtesy of the British Prime Minister's Office)
Later in June, the results of the house of commons by-elections were announced, and the Conservatives lost two seats. Conservative Party chairman Oliver Dowden resigned, and calls for Johnson's ouster rose again.
Bank of England: The outlook for the UK economy has deteriorated significantly
The UK is currently facing economic pressure and soaring energy costs.
The UK's Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose 9.1% year-on-year in May, following April, another 40-year high, according to data released by the Office for National Statistics on June 22. Grant Fitzner, chief economist at the Office for National Statistics, said food prices continued to rise sharply, gasoline prices broke records and inflation remained high after hitting record highs.
Image source: Photo Network_500810321
U.S. Chief UK Economist Paul Dales said UK inflation had not yet peaked. The UK government will raise the upper limit on energy prices in October, and the Bank of England expects the CPI to rise by more than 11% year-on-year.
On July 5, local time, the Bank of England warned that the outlook for the UK and the global economy had "seriously deteriorated". The Bank of England says energy and fuel costs are rising rapidly around the world, making the cost of living rise faster overall.
In the Bank of England's latest financial stability report, the bank said the UK banking sector was ready for a deep recession, but the report noted that banks must increase their reserves to deal with the shock. From now on, banks will be required to set aside an amount equivalent to 2% of their total assets as a buffer fund instead of the normal 1%.
An example is that on July 5, local time, the British Association of Automobile Manufacturers and Dealers released the latest data showing that the number of new car registrations in the UK fell by 24% year-on-year to 140,900 units in June, the lowest sales record since June 1996.
Despite the enormous domestic economic pressure, the UK continues to help Ukraine. On July 5, local time, Johnson held a telephone meeting with Ukrainian President Zelenskiy to exchange the latest developments after the Group of Seven summit and nato summit. Johnson said the latest military equipment provided by the Uk, including 10 types of artillery equipment and ammunition, will arrive in Ukraine in the coming days or weeks. Zelenskiy informed Johnson of the current situation in Ukraine and the latest developments on the Russian-Ukrainian front.
On July 4, local time, British Foreign Secretary Leeds Terras announced a package of support for the British to help Ukraine rebuild.
Tras elaborated on short-term and long-term plans for British aid to Ukraine when attending the International Conference on the Reconstruction of Ukraine in Switzerland on the same day. The UK has provided a total of US$1.5 billion worth of aid and more than £100 million (US$120 million) of direct support to Ukraine through multilateral loan guarantees.
Editor| Lu Xiangyong and Du Hengfeng
Proofreading | Wang Yuelong
Daily Economic News is synthesized from CCTV News and Xinhua News Agency
Daily economic news
Daily economic news