Green Party calls for general election after ‘desperate’ reshuffle

The Green Party of England and Wales has called for a general election following the Tory government’s cabinet reshuffle. The Greens have said the government has ‘reached the end of the road’ and is ‘doing great harm to the country’.

The government reshuffle was triggered by the sacking of Suella Braverman as home secretary following her criticism of the Metropolitan Police’s handling of protests in an article in the Times.

James Cleverly – who was foreign secretary until yesterday morning – replaced Braverman, with former prime minister David Cameron taking Cleverly’s previous post.

Speaking on the reshuffle, Green Party of England and Wales co-leader Adrian Ramsay said: “This reshuffle looks desperate and is a sign that Rishi Sunak has run out of talent. David Cameron started the programme of cuts to our public services which has now brought the NHS to near breaking point. Since his disastrous exit he has cashed in on dodgy lobbying for global oligarchs. And on the odd occasion where Cameron did take a principled stand – such as on maintaining the international aid budget – the government has since reneged. 

“As to the departure of Therese Coffey as Environment Secretary, nature can at least temporarily breathe a sigh of relief as we await to see who replaces her. She put in place a subsidy system which is not working for farmers or the environment, and she has failed to tackle the blight of sewage in our rivers – a situation she herself described as ‘a scandal’ when I challenged her on it at a public meeting in Suffolk last month. 

“We need a fresh start on the environment, with real action to stop the water companies profiting from failure and a proper system of nature-friendly farming payments which are easy for farmers to access. 

“This chaotic and unprincipled government has reached the end of the road. It is doing great harm to the country. We need a general election now.”

Among the other changes in the cabinet reshuffle were:

• Thérèse Coffey resigned from her position as environment secretary
• Steve Barclay was moved from health secretary to environment secretary
• Richard Holden was previously a junior transport minister and is now chairman of the Conservative Party and minister without portfolio. Holden replaces Greg Hands in these roles who has been made a junior minister of state at the department for business and trade (a non-cabinet role)
• Victoria Atkins – previously financial secretary to the treasury – has entered the cabinet as health secretary
• Laura Trott was previously a junior pensions minister and has been appointed chief secretary to the treasury
• Jeremy Quinn resigned as minister for the cabinet office and paymaster general
• John Glenn has been moved from chief secretary to the treasury to minister for the cabinet office and paymaster general
• Esther McVey has been appointed from the backbenches to minister without portfolio in the cabinet office