Convicted fraudster Louise Haigh has been given responsibility for propriety and ethics in government as a whole. Clown country latest…
As Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster Haigh has oversight of the entire Cabinet Office, and, according to the government:
Haigh pleaded guilty to a charge of fraud by false representation in 2014. She had told police her work phone had been stolen during a mugging, but it later transpired the handset was in her possession…
She will also be first secretary of state, a sometimes-used office that usually carries a similar brief to the DPM. Even more beefed up…
With control of propriety and ethics convicted criminal Haigh will have oversight of ministerial standards and conflicts of interest, the handling of allegations of misconduct, the work of the Propriety and Ethics Commission. She is also responsible for many public appointments and their propriety. National security is mostly a matter for the Cabinet Office, which Haigh will be running. Here we go…
Tom Baldwin, author of Starmer’s hagiography, spoke to Times Radio:
Tom Baldwin: “I think he’d like to do something. He’s very dutiful and driven by service. That’s why he came into politics. I think that’s characterised his time as prime minister. He hasn’t always sought popularity or been good at being popular. But I think he has some of the necessary qualities that we actually do want in a prime minister. That resilience, that relentlessness, that ability to carry the weight and the job really does weigh very heavily on people and he carries that weight very, very well.”
Jo Coburn: “NATO Secretary-General?”
Tom Baldwin: “I think that’s something that he would be interested in. I think it probably requires Andy Burnham’s government to support him in that and these are some of the questions which Andy Burnham has to resolve quite quickly.”