India-origin UK Home Secy Braverman resigns with a dig at PM Truss

London, Oct 19

Suella Fernandes Braverman, who has a Goan father and a Mauritian Tamil mother, resigned as British Home Secretary on Wednesday with a dig at Prime Minister Liz Truss clinging on to her job, despite her original economic policy being shredded by her new Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt.

Braverman, 42, a hard Brexiteer, committed the cardinal error of sending an official document to what she called a "trusted parliamentary colleague" on Wednesday morning from her personal email address. This was an infringement of Whitehall rules.

However, in a letter quitting her post, while admitting her slip-up, she stated: "The business of government relies upon people accepting responsibility for their mistakes. Pretending we haven't made mistakes, carrying on as if everyone can't see that we have made them, and hoping that things will magically come right is not serious politics. I have made a mistake; I accept responsibility; I resign."

Truss is seen to be entirely responsible for the chaos created by economic policies announced by her previous Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng, as these were promises she made during the summer's contest to become Prime Minister, which the latter only implemented. But despite widespread demand for Truss' departure, she is still hanging on.

Braverman's resignation adds to the turmoil affecting the British government for nearly four weeks. She had earlier expressed reservations about a trade deal between Britain and India, which is being negotiated. In an interview with the Spectator magazine, she said: "I have concerns about having an open borders migration policy with India because I don't think that's what people voted for with Brexit."

Truss is anxious that the trade deal be agreed upon before Diwali. But Braverman pointed out: "The largest group of people who overstay are Indian migrants."

The Indian High Commission in London, though, stated in response it had been cooperating with British authorities in respect of illegal Indian immigrants in the UK returning to India. At the same, there hasn't been much movement on this front.

--IANS