Boris Johnson to head up Foreign Office
Boris Johnson, UK Foreign Secretary
(CNS): The UK’s new prime minister, Theresa May (59), has appointed the former London mayor, Boris Johnson, who led the campaign to leave the European Union, as the foreign secretary in her first government. Johnson, who is a larger than life controversial figure, replaces Philip Hammond, who will move into No 11 Downing Street as the new Chancellor of the Exchequer after May fired George Osbourne from the Cabinet. Pundits were surprised by Johnson’s appointment to the crucial position, as Britain’s new leader began assembling her team Wednesday evening after moving into No 10.
With only the top jobs decided so far, it is not clear if Brexit supporter James Dudderidge, who currently has the overseas territories brief, will keep his junior post at the FCO.
Amber Rudd has been appointed to May’s old position of home secretary; Eurosceptic ‘Leave’ campaigner David Davis has been given the new post of Brexit secretary and will head up the challenging process of Britain’s departure from the European Union.
As May began announcing the big jobs in her first Cabinet, Michael Fallon kept his job at the Ministry of Defence but Liam Fox, another major Eurosceptic and ‘Leave’ campaigner, has been given the new ministerial job as the secretary of state for international trade, which is likely to become a critical position as the government replaces the hole the EU exit will create in the UK economy with new deals around the world.
Category: UK, World News
A little scary is my honest opinion. We have to pay close attention.
Independence is nothing to be afraid of but just be prepared for a major drop in your standard of living as the financial services sector leaves Cayman. Great for tourism though as prices will drop dramatically.
Insightful comment. I seem to think that this would not be a bad thing.
This man is racist , he called people from kenya , watermelon eating picannies ( not sure how to spell that , but I know what he means ) he has also used racist remarks about Obama , Look him up , he is Not a good pick for that job , The English like him , but the rest of the world , Well he is what he is .
Hey Robert, if the British like him, thats a case for the British to answer. And as for racism, well we’re not going to be lectured by anyone from this side of the world in regard to exploiting people of colour, killing our own in ghettos for short term gratification or ‘respect’, or selecting politicians that have mad ideas, who are obviously corrupt and have even crazier followers.
No my friend, Boris may be eccentric, he may let his unique humour run away with him, but don’t make the mistake of thinking he’s stupid.
This is a highly intelligent and well educated man who speaks many different languages and has the ability to draw a large fascinated audience. They called Churchill a maverick, a trouble maker and a clown. He made some dreadful mistakes in offices of state, but cometh the hour, cometh the man.
Boris is no Churchill, yet. But be warned, this is an office with immense power in the UK state, it is not only responsible for diplomacy and foreign affairs but it is the authority behind the UK’s foreign intelligence service, MI6 or SIS and holds responsibility for GCHQ.
Information is power and Boris will hold a lot of information.
As for Obama, exactly what has he achieved since coming to power? Certainly not a reduction in gun violence or steps towards racial healing, he’s basically failed his own people. He hasn’t even closed Gitmo as promised. His foreign policy has left the Middle East in flames, he sidelined the Saudis and the Israelis and has abandoned the Syrian people to the mercy of Assads murdering forces. And don’t mention his complete failure to stem the muscle flexing of Russia, China or even North Korea. And least said about Obamacare the better, exactly who is paying for that?
What a class act.
The most powerful man in the world? Militarily perhaps, but certainly not diplomatically or with any type of forethought for the future.
Remember his unwanted and very unwise interjection in the EU referendum debate?
The US is still as insular under his stewardship as it has always been, the American public still have absolutely no real understanding of what happens outside of their own towns, let alone state’s or country. In most respects he’s been a lame duck president since the start, America deserves better than this.
This is a country that truly believes that the NFL, MLB, NBA and ice hockey are world sports, that soccer is only played by girls and the world celebrates their Independence Day and Thanksgiving, yes, seriously!
Being a world super power accounts for nothing without credibility. Being a man of colour and a cool dude doesn’t cut it on the international stage if you don’t have credible policies. Ask any political leader in Africa.
He is a great orator and he doesn’t do angry in public, but that’s it. And seriously, look what the US has got to replace him with.
As for Cayman’s fine example of international politicians and diplomats, Ezzard, Arden, McKeeva, Eden etc…. Hmm, I’d rather put my hope in Cayman Elvis than these clowns.
Too bad Boris does not understand basic economics. In 2015 48% of British exports went to the EU while only 8% of EU exports went to Britiain which basically means Britain is put into a near impossible negotiating position in terms of trade diplomacy. Perhaps that is the reason why 79% of sitting Conservative government MPs voted to REMAIN while only 21% of Conservative MPs voted to LEAVE. Boris was one of the 21%. You may think he is intelligent but he certainly does not have a clue about how economics works.
Ermm, I think you may have got your numbers a little mixed up there buddy. How on earth did you come to that conclusion?
The trade deficit, the difference between what we sell and what we buy from the EU is at record levels. For the first 3 months of 2016 it had widened to £24 billion, up £0.7bn.
This means, as you should know, that the UK imports far more from the EU than it exports, consequently it kills the myth that we need them more than they need us.
BMW alone account for a fifth of their annual production in sales to the UK, that’s over 80k vehicles.
No my friend, your attempt at economics have failed spectacularly. That is not to say that the UK shouldn’t be exporting more globally, (as it will do with a weaker pound) but it certainly doesn’t mean we owe the EU anything.
The big problem in the UK is that we have become a services based economy instead of a manufacturing economy as in the past. We have far too many people with their noses in the financial services trough and not enough engineers, scientists or skilled tradesmen.
Hence the large Remain vote in London and the copycats on Cayman. The chattering middle classes, financial services and most Tory MP’s were more concerned about their own shares and nefarious financial interests than they were about their fellow countrymen or the UK’s future. Look where that got us all in 2008 and look how their incompetence provoked a backlash against the all knowing elite in 2016.
Garfield, I do hope your not running for Cayman office, because this country will be in dire straights if you become responsible for balancing the books.
Yet another Remain falsehood. And they accuse Boris of being a clown.
The LEAVE campaign ran an excellent disinformation campaign while completely denying the economic facts which you have obviously bought hook, line and sinker. One does not have to be from the chattering middle classes or from the financial services sector to look at the British Office For National Statistics trade statistics for 2015. Take a close look at the trade stats and enlighten yourself. By the way, the majority of sitting Labour members voted to REMAIN and one of the most prominent ones lost her life for the cause. Labour MPs have voted against their leader and want him replaced. Are they elitist too?
As for vehicles, approximately 200,000 Toyotas, Hondas, Nissans, Mini Coopers, Bentleys, Rolls Royces etc, manufactured in the UK were exported to the EU in 2015. When the UK leaves there will be a 10% tariff on those vehicles exported to the EU and as nearly 50% of the auto parts used in assembling the vehicles are made in the EU there will be a 4% tariff applied on those parts by the EU. So you will be in a deficit position even with the 80,000 BMW vehicles imported into the U.K. WIth the pound at a 31 year low today you will still not be ahead from an export perspective with a lower pound which is going to sink even lower. I regret to say that Britain will be in a full blown recession in 2017 and the Bank of England Governor is preparing for this appropriately with Bank Of England policies.
Two final points, there is nothing wrong with having a knowledge based services economy and states such as America, Canada, UK etc have been running massive surpluses in the services sector for the past decade. You should note that includes more than just financial services and includes engineering, software, environmental, educational services etc. These services are spread throughout the UK and are not only located in the London area. With globalization manufacturing has shifted to middle income states where labour costs are lower and overall costs are lower. That is not necessarily a bad thing and is known as globalization and consumers are the ultimate beneficiary.
My final point is that you seem to have it in for the quote all knowing elite unquote but I can assure you that if ever there was an elitist who did not study enough economics it is Boris who regularly quoted the Romans, (Julius Ceasar) and the Greeks (Plato & Socrates) when asked hard hitting questions when he was Mayor of London. If a university career spent studying nothing else but the Greeks and Romans is not elitist then I do not know what is elitist.
It is a certainty that Boris will be a failure in his new position as Foreign Secretary as insulting people, especially EU officials, utilizing elitist terminology will not make it in this modern age. Boris is an elitist
opportunist who is in well over his head now and the good people of the United Kingdom will pay a price in terms of their standard of living.
Bring on the clowns but let’s hope the show is short.
Calm down 2:47, anybody would think that you actually care sitting out there on your Caribbean tax free pile.
It’s sad that a Remainer would rather live in a country 6000 miles from the UK, than be at home and pay his taxes into his own country’s Treasury or actually live in the EU.
Basically you’re just another whinging liberal whose loyalties lay anywhere except with his in own country. That’s quite apparent, otherwise you wouldn’t be on Cayman.
You have no idea, just like the rest of the world, how Brexit will turn out. I think most people are bright enough to realise that there will be rough periods along the way. The difference between us is that I believe we will overcome and be stronger for it, whereas you hold your hands up and cry foul because it doesn’t fit with your undemocratic, bureaucratic, corrupt and federalist plan.
In the real world none of this should matter, we should be getting on with pulling together, but you are the ones throwing a tantrum, so the rest of us will make it work without you.
But that’s the point of Brexit, to rid ourselves of self serving know it all’s who have historically got it wrong or whose motives are less than honest.
If you’re not a UK citizen then please do our country a favour and stay out. However, if you’re a UK Remainer, please don’t return anytime soon, (as if you were) because according to you we’re all doomed anyway and we can do without the added strain of listening to your defeatist BS.
But I suppose that once your work permit runs out you’ll be off to another tax haven to exploit the many loopholes available to you.
Hopefully your precious EU will bring on its black list, then we’ll see whose side you’re really on.
Oh yes, if you are a UK citizen, there’s no ‘z’ in utilising. Just saying, as your expensive education isn’t serving you well.
Thank you 6:33. Similar to Boris Johnson, you have a lot to learn about polite and intelligent discourse without resorting to personal and condescending attacks. It will be difficult for Boris to learn at his age and I suspect a challenge for you too.
Oh the whiners won’t be happy. FTSE 250 is up and the IMF have said that the UK economy will still grow faster than Germany and France next year, it also said that the Le Garde warnings of doom before Brexit will not now come to fruition.
Perhaps they’ll be happy that their over inflated tax free salaries are worth more in the UK since the long overdue correction of sterling. I bet they’ll take advantage of their new found wealth whilst living in the sun and whinging about how poor ‘WE’ are all going to be. Hypocrites.
8:50 am you couldn’t be more factually incorrect. Here are a few facts for you, a detailed analysis from the Bank of England found that EU membership had benefited the British economy. The assertion that EU countries need the British market more than Britain needs theirs is a fallacy. Britain accounts for only 10% of EU exports regardless of the headline BMW statistic, while the EU takes almost half of Britain’s. Moreover, most of the British trade deficit with the EU is with just two countries – Germany and Spain – yet a trade agreement must be endorsed by the other 25 members too. And you think the UK holds the cards? Get real.
Yep, you just hit the nail on the head, it all needs 27 country’s to agree, what a cluggingly ineffective way to run trade negotiations. What is it, 9 years with China, without agreement, the same for Canada?
No wonder the Chinese are knocking on the door, along with the Aussies and the Kiwis, they’re fed up with dealing with EU bureaucracy and sluggish trade talks.
It is also dumb to dismiss the power of Germany’s economical and industrial might. Of course we buy a lot from Germany, they make good s### and they are the EU main earner of revenue, so the massive export market to the UK is very important for EU wealth. Why is it that Merkal is trying to maintain calm and openly talking about tariff free trade with the U.K.? It’s the French who have a stick up their Gallic arses, but they are also an economic basket case at the moment. They want retribution, but that will inevitably fail.
With the U.K. being the fifth richest nation on earth, how do the bankrupt economies of Southern Europe hope to survive without exporting to us?
Germany won’t keep paying their debts, patience is running thin.
Please enlighten us to the economic benefits of dealing with almost every other EU country, as the EU spends more money keeping them in a failed club than they will ever contribute.
Personally, I don’t think anyone holds the cards, but I do believe that our economic status cannot be ignored, especially by the EU whose own economic woes, on the back of the failed Euro, are only going to get worse.
Oops, PwC have just released their assessment and have clearly stated that because of the swift stabilisation of the economy after Brexit a recession and housing price crash is not likely. They also said that any fallout following Brexit will not be anything as bad as 2008.
Oh dear chums, looks like big boys are p#####g on your fire
A ‘Pickaninny’ is both a noun and an adjective, it can be both offensive and archaic, depending on the context and intent.
It can either mean a small black child or merely very small. It is still used by some African American families and within some Caribbean dialects to refer to their children in affectionate terms.
Boris’s reference was I suspect in the context of small children in Kenya ‘flag waving for the Queen’. I doubt whether it was intended to be a deliberately racist remark, it may have been unwise considering modern fragile sensitivities, but not intentionally racist.
Context and intent are the deciding factors here, some will be offended, others will understand it’s naive application and ignore it. It depends on how small your tolerance for offence is I suppose.
I’m offended to be constantly referred to as ‘driftwood’ or a ‘foreigner’ despite being a fellow British citizen on a British territory. I find it offensive to be judged as drain on Cayman, when I put in far more than I take out. I also find it offensive to to see my fellow work permit holders exploited with low pay, slum accommodation and subjected to xenophobic name calling. But hey, we just have to get over it, suggest you do the same.
So “pickaninny” is not racist but “driftwood” is? lol. You people. You may be a British citizen but unless you are a Caymanian you are a foreigner in Cayman. We were by law foreigners in the UK for many years and I am sure in the estimation of many Brits still are. But your double standards would not recognise that.
So I have double standards and you don’t. Oh dear, you need to read your own post before sending.
The point being that you’re NOT a foreigner now. Don’t worry, we understand that we are foreigners here, you make it so clear at almost every opportunity. But that matters not, as we don’t care what you think, we don’t get all bent out of shape over silly name calling. We are resilient, not fragile and victims of our own insecurity.
I couldn’t give a crap if that’s your viewpoint, it only goes to confirm the bigotry that is alive and well on Cayman, you must be so proud. At least I can hold my head high and say that you are welcome in my country. You can live, work and become a citizen without being penalised or discriminated against.
Most Brits wouldn’t want to live here, its too damn hot, too many insects, too over priced and no green and pleasant land, hills or mountains to walk upon. So you’re not going to see a large invasion anytime soon. Actually, I think we get the better deal and so would you if you wanted to expand your narrow horizons.
As for the main point, I didn’t say that pickaninny couldn’t be racist, I said it was dependent on the context and intent of the speaker.
Any word, phrase or sentence can be racist if used inappropriately, such ‘ you people’ when referring to a certain racial section of society, especially in this case, white British people.
So you see, your rant is just another hypocritical bunch of BS, you’ve actually fallen into a trap of your own making. What an idiot.
Don’t worry about pickaninny, twat suits you better.
Independence is nothing to be afraid of.
After all, it was the wicked, wicked bigwigs of the mid 2000 era in Cayman who decimated our Finances. Not one of them would be an independence voter.
One of them in particular and he knows who he is, took a perfectly good centralized accounting system and destroyed it forcing every government entity to hire their own financial accounting staff.
This also created havoc in our reporting.
What did we do with this person? Rewarded him with an even higher position.
What we need is independence from dishonest politicians and the Lodge.
If there was ever a likelihood that Independence would be forced into question, it would be these two.
Looks like he and trump have the same hairdresser!!
Any more senior appointments like this and we had better have an idependence referendum.
With May holding the reins, it is highly unlikely that you will have a choice!
If he can spearhead Brexit – he’ll be fine in this role. Look forward to him straightening Cayman up.
Absolute piffle. May God bless British diplomacy as British diplomacy is going to require all the help it can get.
Oh dear! This is very frightening. I am concerned for all of us, OTs.
I like Boris. He’s a good laugh. Wonder if he’ll get a proper haircut?
The appointment of Boris as the U.K.’s chief diplomat is as if our Premier had appointed the Leader of the Opposition as Minister of Tact.
His hair could be an omen for windy days ahead of us. You know he’s a very “Independence” man :/
Boris will be good for Cayman.