May Kicks Off Overhaul of Cabinet Ahead of Critical Brexit Year

by Dramelin 7:00 AM 0 comments

Prime Minister Theresa May began a major overhaul of senior ministers on Monday, stamping her authority on a divided U.
government at the start of high-pressure year for Brexit.
Ministers and lawmakers entering May’s official residence will provide clues as to who has been promoted.
We’ll track the comings and goings through the day.
May Makes Lewis Conservative Party Chairman (12:50 p.
m) May’s office confirms Brandon Lewis becomes Chairman of the Conservative Party and as a minister without portfolio.
He replaces Patrick McLoughlin, who has been at the front-line of Tory party politics since Margaret Thatcher’s time.
A popular figure within the party, he will have to prepare the party for the next election -- scheduled for 2022 -- and work out how to tackle the impressive organizational power of Momentum, the pressure group which backs Labour’s leader Jeremy Corbyn.
Following a breakthrough in Brexit negotiations late last year, May starts 2018 in a stronger position than she has enjoyed any time since her disastrous general election performance, which saw the Tories lose their Parliamentary majority.
Even so, as Brexit continues to dominate British politics, May must strike a delicate balance by maintaining equal numbers of euroskeptics alongside those advocating for close ties to the European Union.
Brandon campaigned against the U.
leaving the EU, subsequently accepting the result of the 2016 referendum.
Meanwhile, we analyzed what the unexpected departure of the experienced James Brokenshire as Northern Ireland secretary could mean for Brexit given that the border issue is one of the trickiest in negotiations.
Read about ithere.
Brandon Lewis Walks into 10 Downing Street (12:06 p.
) While no official announcement has been made yet, Immigration Minister Brandon Lewis was seen entering 10 Downing Street in a sign he’s up for a bigger job.
Before entering Parliament in 2010, 46-year-old Lewis was a barrister and director of a company providing fee-paying primary schools in Essex, east of London.
Married with two children, Lewis is a prolific tweeter, often referencing his interest in triathlons and his black Labrador, Buzz.
Earlier: Northern Irish Secretary James Brokenshire resigned on health grounds.
In a letter to May distributed to the media he informed the prime minister that he has a small lesion in his right lung that needs to be removed.
His recovery is expected to take several weeks.