Shortly after, former prime minister David Cameron was appointed foreign secretary – and handed a “barony” so he can serve in government again.
A former prime minister returning to government in this way is highly unusual.
In a statement released after her sacking, Ms Braverman said: “It has been the greatest privilege of my life to serve as home secretary. I will have more to say in due course.”
Mr Cleverly later said: “It’s been a huge privilege to serve as foreign secretary. And in that time, I’ve worked very closely with my colleagues in the Home Office cracking down on illegal migration, reducing the number of small boat arrivals.
“And now, as the home secretary, I’m absolutely committed to stopping the boats, as we promised, but also making sure that everybody in the UK feels safe and secure, going around, going about their daily business, knowing that the government is here to protect them. So it’s a fantastic job and it’s a real privilege to serve.”
Asked if he would distance himself from the words used by his predecessor, he added: “Well, I intend to do this job in the way that I feel best protects the British people and our interests.
“I have had a very good conversation with the prime minister, who’s made it very clear that [he] wants us to deliver on our promises to stop the boats, to the British people, make sure everybody feels secure in their lives. Thank you very much.
Today marks the second time Ms Braverman has lost the job of home secretary – after she resigned from Liz Truss’s government breaking the ministerial code. Mr Sunak reappointed her less than a week later when he took over as prime minister.
Last week, Ms Braverman wrote a newspaper article that accused the police of “playing favourites”as she criticised the Metropolitan Police’s handling of a controversial pro-Palestinian march for Armistice Day.
The prime minister came under pressure to act after Ms Braverman was accused of undermining the operational independence of – and public confidence in – the police.
Critics, from both opposition parties and fellow Tory MPs, called Ms Braverman’s comments “offensive” and “inflammatory”.
Over the weekend, far-right protesters clashed with police in Westminster. Elsewhere, pro-Palestinian marches also ended with arrests.
Speaking to Sky News this morning, armed forces minister James Heappey became the latest member of the government to distance themselves from Ms Braverman’s words – joining Defence Secretary Grant Shapps and Chancellor Jeremy Hunt.
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In a post on the Conservative Party’s social media, it claims Mr Sunak’s reshuffle today “strengthens his team in government to deliver long-term decisions for a brighter future”.
But the move to sack Ms Braverman will anger some in the party. Tory MP Andrea Jenkyns said on X: “I support Suella Braverman. Sacked for speaking the truth. Bad call by Rishi caving in to the left!”
On the other side of the debate, some MPs welcomed the change in direction. Former health secretary Matt Hancock said: “Excellent for the Conservatives, showing Rishi Sunak will fight the election on the centre ground.”
As well as Ms Braverman being sacked, a number of junior ministers also left government.
Nick Gibb, who has been a minister in the Deparment for Education for much of the past decade, announced he was standing down.
Neil O’Brien said he had asked to return to the backbenches from his role as a junior minister in the Department for Health and Social Care.
Will Quince also announced that he would step down as a junior minister in DHSC, and Jesse Norman said he would be standing down as a DfT minister.
Yvette Cooper, Labour’s shadow home secretary, said: “Suella Braverman has now been sacked twice as home secretary.
“Rishi Sunak [should] never have re-appointed her in first place. He was warned against it & was warned on the damage she was doing.
“He went along with her undermining the police. Buck still stops with this weak PM.”
More strikes have been announced by Border Force staff at Heathrow Airport at the back end of half term.
The strike action will take place on 31 May and 1 and 2 June.
It will be followed by three weeks of action short of a strike, including staff working to rule and a ban on overtime running from 4 until 25 June.
More than 500 members of the PCS (public and commercial services) union will take part in the strikes, which come following a dispute over a new staff roster.
The PCS said it expects the walkouts to disrupt passport checks for travellers coming into the UK at the airport.
The union said it had written to the Home Office following the previous industrial action “highlighting the many problems raised” with the new system.
Its general secretary Fran Heathcote said: “We are keen to resolve this dispute but the Home Office must first put something on the table for our members to consider.
“The Home Office has said it is ‘open to discuss’ a resolution but it only responded to our request for a meeting after we threatened further action.
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“Until it comes back with changes to the roster that will benefit our members then the dispute will continue.”
A spokeswoman for Heathrow Airport said it would be working with the Home Office on contingency plans to minimise disruption to passengers.
She told Sky News that past strikes had been “dealt with well” and “managed successfully”.
A Home Office spokeswoman said: “We are disappointed with the union’s decision to strike but remain open to discussing a resolution with PCS union.
“The changes we are implementing will bring the working arrangements for Border Force Heathrow staff in line with the way staff work at all other major ports, provide them with more certainty on working patterns, and improve the service to the travelling public.
“We have robust plans in place to minimise disruption where possible, but we urge passengers to check the latest advice from operators before they travel.”
A “predator” teacher has been found guilty of having sex with two schoolboys.
Rebecca Joynes, 30, was found guilty of four counts of sexual activity with a child and two counts of sexual activity with a child by a person in a position of trust, following a two-week trial at Manchester Crown Court.
Joynes had denied she had sex with one schoolboy, boy A, and insisted in court that her relationship with a second teenager, boy B, only began once he had left school and she had been fired from her job – so it wasn’t illegal.
Jurors heard that both boys sent Joynes flirty Snapchat messages, and hid the interactions from their parents.
She took boy A – who lied about going to a friend’s house after school finished on a Friday – shopping and bought him a £350 Gucci belt before they went back to her flat in Salford Quays, where they had sex twice, the court was told.
Joynes told the boy, “No one had better find out”.
The next day the court heard the boy’s mother noticed a love-bite on her son’s neck which he dismissed as, “nothing”.
However, rumours began circulating and on the Monday morning police officers were at the school along with boy A’s “distraught” mother who stormed into reception after being told her son had spent the night with a teacher.
Joynes was bailed on condition she have no unsupervised contact with anyone under 18.
The teenager’s semen was later recovered from her bedsheets by police.
Boy B said sexual activity began when he was 15, with kissing and full sex when he was 16 – and still a pupil.
Joynes was already suspended from her high school job when she allegedly kissed and fondled the second, boy B, after sending him a photo of her bottom wearing just a thong, the jury heard.
Boy B later told officers he viewed the relationship as “friends with benefits” and said they regularly had sex while he was still at school.
He said Joynes had told him she could not have a baby and they had unprotected sex.
She said she had come out of a nine-year relationship, was lonely and flattered by the attention.
During the trial, she appeared in court with a pink baby’s bonnet visibly tucked into her trousers.
It belonged to the child she had with boy B.
Joynes wept as she told jurors the baby she had with boy B was taken away from her hours after giving birth and she now has only limited access, three times a week.
Jane Wilson, senior crown prosecutor for CPS North West, described Joynes as a “sexual predator”.
“Joynes was entrusted with the responsibility of teaching and safeguarding children. She abused her position to groom and ultimately sexually exploit schoolboys. Her behaviour has had a lasting impact on them.”
The confirmed cases of a waterborne disease caused by a parasite have more than doubled.
There are now 46 confirmed cases of cryptosporidiosis, a diarrhoeal illness, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has said – with more than 100 further people reporting similar symptoms in the Brixham area.
Other reported cases of diarrhoea and vomiting in residents and visitors to the south Devon town are also under investigation. Hundreds of locals have also reported feeling unwell over the last two weeks on social media.
MPs and South West Water officials have confirmed the parasite most likely entered water supplies through animal faeces, but an investigation is still ongoing.
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‘Cow faeces’ infected Devon water
The UKHSA first confirmed cases of the disease at around midday on Wednesday, while locals were initially told by South West Water that their tap water was uncontaminated and safe to drink.
But after testing supplies in the Hillhead reservoir, the water company found “small traces” of the parasite cryptosporidium – which causes cryptosporidiosis – and told residents in parts of Brixham and Alston to boil their drinking water on Wednesday.
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A total of 16,000 households and businesses in Brixham, Boohay, Kingswear, Roseland and North West Paignton were impacted and offered £15 compensation at first.
Over the next two days, South West Water apologised to those affected and increased the offer to £115. Amid the chaos, one primary school closed its doors on Thursday due to not having safe running drinking water.
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‘Very hard questions for water company’
Speaking to Sky News yesterday, South West Water’s chief customer officer Laura Flowerdew confirmed it was likely a broken air valve contaminated by animal faeces that had caused the outbreak.
However, she refused to give a timeframe on how long the incident would be ongoing – leaving thousands of residents facing an uncertain future.
Speaking on Friday at the University of Exeter, Health Secretary Victoria Atkins said there will be “very, very hard questions” for South West Water over the outbreak.
“At the moment I think we probably need to give them the space to conduct their investigation; we know that they have identified the source,” she said.
“The public will want to know how on earth that source happened, what was the chain of events that led to this, because of course we all understand the expectation that we all have when we turn our taps on is that [we get] clean drinking water and we want to be able to trust it.”
Totnes MP Anthony Mangnall also warned the boil notice could last “at least a further six or seven days” and called for more transparency.
Professor Paul Hunter, a specialist in medical microbiology at the University of East Anglia, told Sky News if the parasite was “a continuous thing” present in water supplies for a prolonged period, then “you’d expect to see more cases” for another two weeks.
It comes as hotel owners in the area told Sky News the outbreak has led to people cancelling their stay, while a head chef said “I can’t wash salad in the sink”.
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Stephen Colemansfield, owner of Redlands Guest House in Brixham, told Sky News the outbreak has “destroyed our business at the moment”.
“Our guests have cancelled because of the mixed messages that are being sent out by South West Water.”
Rob, head chef at the Steam Packet Inn in Kingswear near Dartmouth, also said his brother-in-law is one of the 46 confirmed cases of cryptosporidiosis and has been sick for two weeks.
The UKHSA is working with Torbay Council, South West Water, NHS Devon and the Environment Agency on the incident.