“Theresa May, the prime minister-in-waiting, is scrambling to put together a cabinet within 48 hours after plans for a two-month Tory leadership race collapsed with the dramatic withdrawal of her rival, Andrea Leadsom. David Cameron will spend his last day in Downing Street, meanwhile, drawing up a list of resignation honours, including a series of new peerages that could take the House of Lords close to the 850 mark, before handing over to Mrs May tomorrow. She will become Britain’s 54th prime minister and its second woman to hold the office.” – The Times(£)
>Today:
>Yesterday:
“What was the final straw? I think Leadsom was genuinely shocked by the poisonous attacks from forces within her own party. She said it was “highly unlikely” that the daily stories saying how useless/dishonest/Christian she was “are coincidental”. (Interesting, isn’t it, that no one calls practising Muslim Sadiq Khan a “religious nutter”.) In a perverse way, the relentless barrage was a compliment, a sign that Leadsom was seen as a real threat….Whatever it took, Leadsom had to be kept away from the hustings where her smiley, down-to-earth style, experience of the real world and spirited fight for Brexit might endear her to the rank and file.” – Allison Pearson Daily Telegraph
>Yesterday:
“Senior Labour MP Jon Trickett has joined the Lib Dems and Green Party in calling for a snap general election. Mr Trickett, Labour’s general election co-ordinator and an ally of leader Jeremy Corbyn, said it was “crucial” to have a “democratically elected prime minister” and he was putting the party on “general election footing”. Mrs May has rejected such demands.” – BBC
“The Italian paper Il Sole 24 Ore calls her Britain’s answer to Germany’s Angela Merkel: “cold, competent and determined”. Grudgingly, Brussels recognises that Theresa May (who is said always to have come to ministerial meetings here well-briefed) is unlikely to bow to EU pressure to start formal Brexit negotiations before holding extensive consultations. They will take place at home, in Brussels with Britain’s team of hugely experienced civil servants and with European counterparts across the continent – perhaps with a tour of European capitals.” – BBC
“George Osborne hailed Theresa May’s ‘strength, integrity and leadership’ yesterday as he dropped heavy hints he wants to be the next Foreign Secretary. The Chancellor, who has frequently clashed with Mrs May over spending cuts, has made clear he wants to stay in the Cabinet promoting global trade in the wake of the Brexit vote. Speaking from New York yesterday, where he was on a trade mission, he described Mrs May’s coronation as ‘very welcome news’.” Daily Mail
“Now the Camerons have been turfed out two months early, they barely have time to gather their belongings, and nowhere permanent to go immediately in London. For their three children Nancy, 12, Elwen, ten, and Florence, five, it must be an extraordinarily traumatic and bewildering time. Amid the excitement of the end of a school term, the children face a summer of domestic upheaval that is likely to see them spending the summer in temporary accommodation in the capital. Leaving their Downing Street flat will be a wrench.” – Isabel Oakeshott Daily Mail
>Today: ToryDiary: Cameron’s last full day as Prime Minister. At his best, he made very difficult things look easy
“Taking power now means she can work the Treasury, the Cabinet Office and the Foreign Office to the bone in preparing a full assessment of the options for negotiating Britain’s certain exit from the European Union. When Parliament reconvenes from the summer in early September, and the Tory conference meets at the beginning of October, she will need to be able to say decisively what her approach will be: when Article 50 will be invoked, what the future relationship will look like, when the UK should have completed its withdrawal. But she need not feel under pressure to do so within days of forming the new government.” – William Hague Daily Telegraph
“I have known Theresa May for a large part of my time in politics. Some years ago, I appointed her to be the first female Conservative Party chairman. I know her to be hard-working, conscientious and thoroughly decent and I unreservedly congratulate her. I believe she faces three huge tasks; the first is unifying the Government and the country; the second is taking the UK out of the EU; and the third is to rebalance the economy and rebalance society. In reality, the first is impossible unless we are clear about the second and deliver it. “Leave must mean leave” is an easy phrase, but to achieve it there needs to be some substance to our red lines and, importantly, a clear idea of the process by which we will implement the decision of the British people.” – Iain Duncan Smith Daily Telegraph
Other comment
“A decision on whether Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn should automatically be included in the party’s leadership race is set to be made by its ruling National Executive Committee. Labour-commissioned legal analysis states he needs nominations by 51 MPs and MEPs – just like any challenger – but unions say, as leader, he does not. Mr Corbyn has vowed to fight any exclusion from the ballot paper. Angela Eagle launched a challenge to Mr Corbyn’s leadership on Monday.” – BBC
>Today: Local government: Labour councillors are split on Corbyn’s future
“Europe’s largest industrial combine has vowed to press ahead with investment in Britain despite the vote to leave the EU, backing away deftly from earlier suggestions that Brexit would cause a painful freeze on new activities. Joe Kaeser, the chief executive of Siemens, said the German engineering and technology giant remains fully committed to the UK whatever happens, but called on Theresa May to clarify Britain’s post-Brexit trade vision as soon as possible and tell the world what kind of country it will become. “We’re here for the long-term and we don’t let ourselves get jerked up and down. We’re staying because the UK is a good place to do business,” he said.” – Daily Telegraph
“UKIP’s only MP has been barred from standing as its new leader. The party’s ruling National Executive Committee (NEC) has said any candidate hoping to succeed Nigel Farage must have been a party member for at least five years – which rules out Clacton MP Douglas Carswell, who defected from the Conservatives in 2014. Other leading Ukip figure, former welfare spokeswoman Susanne Evans who is temporarily suspended from the party for “disloyalty”, will also be blocking from running.” – Independent
“Nationals of other European countries are coming to Britain to register for British European Health Insurance Cards. The cards allow them to claim treatment in hospitals in their home countries at our expense. According to the Government, deliberate health tourism costs the UK taxpayer between £110 million and £280 million a year. Another £1.8billion, it claims, is racked up in costs treating people who did not come to Britain to seek free healthcare but who fell ill while they were here.This figure is shocking enough in that it represents two per cent of the NHS budget. But how can anyone know the full cost when hospitals and surgeries often do not bother to check whether someone is entitled to treatment or not?…Far from being the envy of the world the NHS is becoming an object lesson in how not to run a health service.” – Ross Clark Daily Express
“Donald Trump’s hunt for a vice-presidential running mate is unfolding with all the melodrama of a reality TV series; a competition played out on Twitter and television, where the grand prize could be a job a heartbeat away from the Oval Office. Eschewing a tradition of secrecy, Mr Trump has tweeted details of his meetings with potential candidates, creating a selection process reminiscent of The Apprentice. The hit TV show, in which contestants fought for a position in his company, rehabilitated Mr Trump’s career. His business fortunes were in the doldrums when it made its debut in 2004.” – The Times(£)