A key resignation captured the attention of the country during the reshuffle, and the DfT has new faces at the helm
The resignation of the Chancellor, Sajid Javid, in last week’s reshuffle certainly came as a huge surprise.
But, with hindsight, perhaps the reason for it – Boris Johnson’s decision to merge the Number 10 and Treasury teams of advisers, requiring Sajid Javid to dispense with his own advisers – was not.
It’s been clear that there were growing tensions between the Treasury and Number 10. The premature briefing of the media that Sajid Javid was in favour of HS2 before the final announcement on the future of the project was made was without doubt the final straw.
Shock resignation
The Treasury will now kneel to the requirements and demands of Number 10. At a stroke, Boris Johnson has resolved the one issue that has been the curse of governments down the ages – rifts between Prime Ministers and their Chancellors.
Geoffrey Howe’s resignation as Margaret Thatcher’s Chancellor led to her ultimate demise, while Norman Lamont’s resignation as John Major’s Chancellor sealed the sense that John Major’s days were numbered.
The rifts between Tony Blair and Gordon Brown are things of legend that political commentators will tell their grandchildren about.
But this is no Geoffrey Howe or Norman Lamont moment. Rather, Boris Johnson has shown what a powerful position he’s in, and that he can be ruthless when needed.
Prime Ministers in weaker positions would never have dared to allow a situation to develop which caused their Chancellor to resign.
Sajid Javid is the second shortest serving Chancellor in British politics, second only to Iain Macleod who was Chancellor in 1970 for just one month, but he had a good reason – he died.
Department for Transport
At the Department for Transport (DfT) we say goodbye to George Freeman and Nusrat Ghani and hello to Andrew Stephenson and Kelly Tolhurst.
I don’t know Andrew Stephenson, but I’m told he has absolutely no interest in or knowledge of transport – not that these have ever been qualifications to be a Transport Minister.
He has a northern constituency (Pendle), so I suspect he’s been put in at DfT to be the voice of the North when transport spending and infrastructure decisions come to be taken, now that looking after the North is a top government priority.
Kelly Tolhurst is solid and dependable and is a welcome addition to the ministerial team. Baroness Vere stays at DfT so hopefully she will keep the buses brief.
We are also saying goodbye to Tricia Hayes, the DfT Director General responsible for buses, among many other issues. She moves to the Home Office and I’m sure the industry would wish her every success in her new role.
Of course, last week Mr Johnson announced that the government is to invest a whopping £5bn in buses and cycling over the next five years.
There will be an extra 4,000 new, zero-carbon buses with higher frequency services, more “turn up and go” routes and simpler, more affordable fares. I’ll comment further on this bus industry bonanza next week.
