Connect with us

Published

on

Defence Secretary Ben Wallace has revealed he will step down from his post at the next reshuffle and quit as an MP at the next election.

Mr Wallace, the longest-serving Conservative to head the Ministry of Defence, said in an interview with The Times: “I’m not standing next time.”

He added that he will not force a by-election by resigning “prematurely” – as fellow allies of Boris Johnson have done.

Mr Wallace further confirmed he would leave the cabinet at the next reshuffle, which the prime minister is expected to hold this September.

Sky News reported that he was considering the move on Saturday.

“I went into politics in the Scottish parliament in 1999. That’s 24 years. I’ve spent well over seven years with three phones by my bed,” he told The Times.

When asked what the devices were for, he replied: “Secret, secret and secret.”

Read more:
Why Ben Wallace’s days were numbered – analysis

Ukraine-Russia war latest: Wagner troops cross border to Belarus, says Kyiv

It comes following controversy last week when the defence secretary told a NATO summit press conference that the UK was not an “Amazon” delivery service for weapons to Ukraine.

He also said Kyiv might be wise to let its supporters “see gratitude”.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak later pushed back against the comments, saying Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had “expressed his gratitude for what we’ve done on a number of occasions”.

Mr Zelenskyy, speaking at the same event in Lithuania, also responded: “I believe that we were always grateful to the UK.”

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

PM quizzed on Ukraine gratitude

Following the news of his departure on Saturday evening, Mr Wallace took to Twitter in an attempt to clarify his “Amazon” comments.

In a series of tweets posted in Ukrainian, he said his remarks were “somewhat misinterpreted”.

“I said that Ukraine sometimes needs to realise that in many countries and in some parliaments there is not such strong support as in Great Britain,” he wrote.

“It was a comment not about governments, but more about citizens and members of parliaments.”

He added that he meant to say Britain’s relationship with Ukraine is not “transactional” but more of a “partnership”.

Speculation about the defence secretary’s fate has been mounting for weeks, with officials inside the Ministry of Defence wondering who might replace him.

It also comes following a failed UK bid to make Mr Wallace the next head of NATO.

The 53-year-old last month ruled himself out of the race to replace Jens Stoltenberg after apparently failing to get the backing of the US.

Mr Wallace told The Times that a desire to spend more time with his family, including his three children, was one of his reasons for leaving politics.

Read more on Sky News:
Johnson calls for NATO timetable for Ukraine to join alliance
Thousands of civil service posts to be cut
Liz Truss paid £15,770 an hour for second jobs

Asked what he would do next, he replied: “I’m quite happy to go and work at a bar,” or “just do something completely different.”

Wallace’s career in the corridors of power came after he left school at the age of eighteen – before a “short stint” as a ski instructor in Austria.

He then served as a captain in the Scots Guards and worked in the aerospace industry before entering politics in 1999.

Mr Wallace was once tipped as a potential candidate for Tory leader and prime minister.

But he ruled himself out of the race to replace Boris Johnson last summer and instead backed eventual winner Liz Truss.

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

‘UK missiles have been used in Ukraine’

He then said he would not stand in the contest to replace her and revealed he was “leaning towards” backing a return by Mr Johnson to the post.

Mr Wallace had been facing the prospect of effectively losing his constituency of Wyre and Preston North at the next general election under boundary changes – meaning he would have needed to stand in another seat to remain as an MP.

The MP also revealed in his interview with The Times that, on the eve of the war in Ukraine, he discussed Britain supplying weapons to Kyiv – using whiskies as a code.

Referring to secret talks with his counterpart Oleksii Reznikov, he said: “the Nlaw [anti-tank missile] was Glenfiddich and Harpoon anti-ship missiles were Islay.

“I would text him saying ‘I’ve got some whisky for you’ or ‘the whisky is on its way’. We just picked codewords, minister to minister.”

Continue Reading

Politics

Water ombudsman will be created – as major report into ‘broken’ industry to be unveiled

Published

on

By

New water ombudsman to give public stronger protections, government pledges

Consumers will get stronger protections with a new water watchdog – as trust in water companies takes a record dive.

Environment Secretary Steve Reed will announce today that the government will set up the new water ombudsman with legal powers to resolve disputes, rather than the current voluntary system.

The watchdog will mean an expansion of the Consumer Council for Water’s (CCW) role and will bring the water sector into line with other utilities that have legally binding consumer watchdogs.

Consumers will then have a single point of contact for complaints.

Politics latest: Labour should let water companies ‘go bust’, Farage says

The Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) said the new watchdog would help “re-establish partnership” between water companies and consumers.

A survey by the CCW in May found trust in water companies had reached a new low, with fewer than two-thirds of people saying they provided value for money.

Just 35% said they thought charges from water companies were fair – even before the impact could be felt from a 26% increase in bills in April.

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

‘We’ll be able to eliminate sewage spillages’

Mr Reed is planning a “root and branch reform” of the water industry – which he branded “absolutely broken” – that he will reveal alongside a major review of the sector today.

The review is expected to recommend the scrapping of water regulator Ofwat and the creation of a new one, to incorporate the work of the CCW.

Read more:
Labour will eliminate unauthorised sewage spillages in a decade
Under-fire water regulator could be scrapped

sewage surfers water pollution protest brighton
Image:
A water pollution protest by Surfers Against Sewage in Brighton

Campaigners and MPs have accused Ofwat of failing to hold water operators to account, while the companies complain a focus on keeping bills down has prevented appropriate infrastructure investment.

On Sunday, Mr Reed avoided answering whether he would get rid of Ofwat or not when asked on Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips.

He pledged to halve sewage pollution by water companies by 2030 and said Labour would eliminate unauthorised sewage spillages in a decade.

Mr Reed announced £104bn of private investment to help the government do that.

Victoria Atkins MP, shadow secretary of state for environment, food and rural Affairs, said: “While stronger consumer protections are welcome in principle, they are only one part of the serious long-term reforms the water sector needs.

“We all want the water system to improve, and honesty about the scale of the challenge is essential. Steve Reed must explain that bill payers are paying for the £104 billion investment plan. Ministers must also explain how replacing one quango with another is going to clean up our rivers and lakes.

“Public confidence in the water system will only be rebuilt through transparency, resilience, and delivery.”

Continue Reading

Politics

Embedding human rights into crypto isn’t optional, it’s foundational

Published

on

By

Embedding human rights into crypto isn’t optional, it’s foundational

Embedding human rights into crypto isn’t optional, it’s foundational

Embedding human rights into crypto systems is a necessity. Self-custody, privacy-by-default, and censorship-resistant personhood must be core design principles for any technology. The future of digital freedom depends on it.

Continue Reading

Politics

Experts say ‘just a starting point’ as Crypto Week ends on a high note

Published

on

By

Experts say ‘just a starting point’ as Crypto Week ends on a high note

Experts say ‘just a starting point’ as Crypto Week ends on a high note

The GENIUS Act marks a turning point for crypto regulation, but experts say true integration with finance and identity systems is only beginning.

Continue Reading

Trending