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| Theresa May appoints close ally Damian Green as first secretary of state | Theresa May appoints close ally Damian Green as first secretary of state |
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| Theresa May has appointed Damian Green, her close ally and longtime friend, as first secretary of state, as she kicks off a cabinet reshuffle aimed at shoring up her position in Downing Street. | Theresa May has appointed Damian Green, her close ally and longtime friend, as first secretary of state, as she kicks off a cabinet reshuffle aimed at shoring up her position in Downing Street. |
| The title implies that Green will be May’s number two, standing in for her at prime minister’s questions, for example. He will also be minister for the cabinet office – replacing Ben Gummer, who lost his Ipswich seat at last week’s general election. | The title implies that Green will be May’s number two, standing in for her at prime minister’s questions, for example. He will also be minister for the cabinet office – replacing Ben Gummer, who lost his Ipswich seat at last week’s general election. |
| May is rebuilding her team to replace ministers who lost their seats, and to underline the fact that she can form a working government despite losing her majority. | |
| David Gauke, widely considered a safe pair of hands, will be promoted from chief secretary to the Treasury to take over Green’s old job at the Department of Work and Pensions, responsible for implementing the rollout of the government’s welfare reforms. | David Gauke, widely considered a safe pair of hands, will be promoted from chief secretary to the Treasury to take over Green’s old job at the Department of Work and Pensions, responsible for implementing the rollout of the government’s welfare reforms. |
| Liz Truss will take over from Gauke as chief secretary – a demotion from her previous post of justice secretary. Truss was criticised by senior judges for failing to defend the judiciary against the media backlash that followed the supreme court Brexit ruling, which led to headlines branding judges “enemies of the people”. | |
| David Lidington is promoted to justice secretary. Lidington is a former Europe minister with good links across the Conservative party, who was previously the leader of the House of Commons. He holds a doctorate in history. | |
| Justine Greening keeps her job as education secretary, despite differences with May over her flagship policy to expand the number of grammar schools in England. | |
| Greg Clark, another ally, was confirmed in his post as business secretary, while prominent Brexiter Liam Fox will remain as secretary of state for international trade. Sajid Javid stays put at the department of communities and local government and Alun Cairns remains as Welsh secretary. | |
| Five of the most senior figures in cabinet – Boris Johnson, Michael Fallon, Philip Hammond, Amber Rudd and David Davis, were told on Friday that they would retain their posts. | Five of the most senior figures in cabinet – Boris Johnson, Michael Fallon, Philip Hammond, Amber Rudd and David Davis, were told on Friday that they would retain their posts. |
| May will have to face her MPs at a meeting of the backbench 1922 committee, expected to take place on Monday evening, with one senior Conservative saying she would have to give a “barnstorming” performance to hold on to her job. | May will have to face her MPs at a meeting of the backbench 1922 committee, expected to take place on Monday evening, with one senior Conservative saying she would have to give a “barnstorming” performance to hold on to her job. |
| Instead of delivering the enhanced personal mandate the prime minister had hoped to win from the electorate, last week’s general election wiped out May’s majority and undermined her authority within her party. | Instead of delivering the enhanced personal mandate the prime minister had hoped to win from the electorate, last week’s general election wiped out May’s majority and undermined her authority within her party. |
| She will try to govern with the support of Northern Ireland’s Democratic Unionist party, which has 10 MPs at Westminster, but that will still leave her with a wafer-thin majority, heavily reliant on the backing of all her MPs. | She will try to govern with the support of Northern Ireland’s Democratic Unionist party, which has 10 MPs at Westminster, but that will still leave her with a wafer-thin majority, heavily reliant on the backing of all her MPs. |
| Many pro-Brexit MPs are supporting her, fearing that an alternative leader might take a less robust approach when talks with Brussels begin. | Many pro-Brexit MPs are supporting her, fearing that an alternative leader might take a less robust approach when talks with Brussels begin. |
| Crispin Blunt, a backbench MP who supported Brexit and chaired the foreign affairs committee in the last parliament, called for his party to exercise “huge discipline” – and delay thinking about the leadership until Brexit negotiations are over. | Crispin Blunt, a backbench MP who supported Brexit and chaired the foreign affairs committee in the last parliament, called for his party to exercise “huge discipline” – and delay thinking about the leadership until Brexit negotiations are over. |
| “The electorate has dealt us a rather tricky hand. What we have got to do is hold her in position. We’re probably going to have to boost her confidence, which will have taken a knock. We have got a job to do for the next two years,” he said. | “The electorate has dealt us a rather tricky hand. What we have got to do is hold her in position. We’re probably going to have to boost her confidence, which will have taken a knock. We have got a job to do for the next two years,” he said. |
| Blunt added: “I would have thought the time to return to the leadership question is after Brexit is delivered. We are in a very precarious position as a country, and as a party.” | Blunt added: “I would have thought the time to return to the leadership question is after Brexit is delivered. We are in a very precarious position as a country, and as a party.” |
| May is seeking a confidence and supply arrangement with the DUP – a looser arrangement than a formal coalition, which would lead to the Northern Irish party backing the Conservatives on major votes. | |
| Some senior Tories have expressed concerns about any linkup with the socially conservative DUP, among them the Scottish leader, Ruth Davidson, who led the party to a strong performance north of the border. | |
| May’s two most senior advisers, Nick Timothy and Fiona Hill, both resigned on Saturday, with senior ministers blaming them for the manifesto – which had few giveaways to tempt wavering voters – and for the controlling management style in No 10. | May’s two most senior advisers, Nick Timothy and Fiona Hill, both resigned on Saturday, with senior ministers blaming them for the manifesto – which had few giveaways to tempt wavering voters – and for the controlling management style in No 10. |