The newly appointed U.K. Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson, who had led the charge on the Brexit vote, will represent the country internationally despite having personally insulted numerous world leaders, including U.S. President Barack Obama.
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“EU leaders, however, are pressuring Britain to open formal exit talks sooner “ and warning that the United Kingdom can not have access to the single European market of 500 million people without accepting the free movement of EU citizens, a sticking point for many pro-Brexit Britons.
On his first day as a Cabinet minister, Boris Johnson said he is “very excited” to be the new Foreign Secretary – but what will his new job actually entail?
In a clear indication that she intends to carve out a brand new path in government, May had announced her first big shake-up just minutes after entering Downing Street on Wednesday evening by replacing George Osborne as UK Chancellor with Philip Hammond.
Johnson said he had had a “very, very busy” first day on the job, with U.S. counterpart John Kerry among the first to call with congratulations. “After careful reflection I have informed the prime minister today that, in the best interests of my family, I can not be part of her government at this time”.
“It has been the greatest honour of my life to serve our country as prime minister over these last six years and to serve as leader of my party for nearly 11 years”, he said.
But, Davis said the country should take its time before triggering the formal Article 50 process to leave the bloc – an approach at odds with other European states, who have urged Britain to do quickly to clear up uncertainty.
Mr Steinmeier said: “Boris Johnson is a crafty party politician who managed to use the eurosceptic mood for himself”.
The surprise choice drew a withering response from French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault, who described the former London mayor as a liar.
“On all the phone calls, the Prime Minister emphasised her commitment to delivering the will of the British people to leave the European Union”.
May, Britain’s second female prime minister, is undertaking a sweeping Cabinet shuffle on her first full day in office. “And, I know because we’re Great Britain, we will rise to the challenge”. But completely different political tasks now stand at the forefront: “This is about taking foreign policy responsibility beyond Brexit”.
Liz Truss moves from her role as secretary for environment, food and rural affairs to replace Michael Gove as justice secretary.
Ms Justine Greening, formerly in charge of worldwide development, is now Education Secretary and Minister for Women and Equalities.
However, May has said Britain will need time to prepare for the negotiations.
New British Treasury chief Hammond tried to sound a reassuring note Thursday, pledging that he would not introduce an emergency national budget – even though there are question marks hanging over the economy following the country’s decision to leave the EU. And May told Juncker she wanted to see the appointment of Britain’s new European Union commissioner approved. The treachery left Johnson out of the Conservative leadership race.
At the heart of the job will be finding an answer to the key negotiating riddle: how can Britain keep access to the EU’s single market whilst winning the right to restrict free movement of workers from within the EU?
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The Bank of England on Thursday held off on an anticipated cut in interest rates, keeping them unchanged at 0.5 percent, but signaled a possible cut next month.
