Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II has appointed Liz Truss as the new prime minister a day after the former foreign secretary won the ruling party’s leadership race.

Truss, 47, on Monday won the ruling Conservative Party’s leadership contest, gaining the parliamentary majority to become the country’s next prime minister and replacing her predecessor, who was forced to resign.

“The Queen received in Audience The Right Honorable Elizabeth Truss MP today and requested her to form a new Administration,” a Buckingham Palace statement said.

“Ms. Truss accepted Her Majesty’s offer and kissed hands upon her appointment as Prime Minister and First Lord of the Treasury,” it added.

Truss is set to form a new government, with the country facing skyrocketing inflation, which has caused the worsening cost-of-living crisis in the UK.

The new prime minister, who has promised tax cuts to relieve the burden of a toxic economic situation on people, has said that she is going to set out “immediate action” in her first week on the job to tackle rising energy bills and to increase energy supplies.

The outgoing Boris Johnson, who was forced to resign after a series of scandalous incidents, delivered his farewell speech on Tuesday, vowing support for his successor during a “tough time”.

Source: Presstv

Moscow-backed authorities in the southeastern Ukrainian region of Zaporizhzhia said Monday they were pressing ahead with plans to stage a referendum on joining Russia.

“I signed a decree … to start working on the issue of organising a referendum on the reunification of the Zaporizhzhia region with the Russian Federation,” Yevgeny Balitsky, head of the Moscow-installed administration in the occupied part of the region, said on social media.

Balitsky had earlier indicated the vote could be held in the autumn.

The eponymous Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant – Europe’s largest – has in recent days been the scene of strikes that have damaged several structures, forcing the shutdown of a reactor.

The southern Ukrainian regions of Kherson and Zaporizhzhia have been largely under Russia’s control since the first weeks of Moscow’s military campaign.

Both are now being forcefully integrated into Russia’s economy.

Source: France 24

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Sunday sacked his chief prosecutor and the head of the country’s security agency in the largest government shakeup since the start of Russia’s invasion nearly five months ago.

Zelensky said he was firing Prosecutor General Iryna Venediktova and security chief Ivan Bakanov amid a high number of cases of suspected treason by Ukrainian law enforcement officials.

“Today, I made the decision of relieving of their duties the prosecutor general and the head of Ukraine’s security service,” Zelensky said in his daily address to the nation.

Zelensky said over 650 cases of suspected treason and aiding and abetting Russia by Ukrainian security officials are currently being investigated, including 60 cases of officials who have remained in territories occupied by Russia and are working against Ukraine.

“Such a great number of crimes against the foundations of national security and the connections established between Ukrainian law enforcement officials and Russian special services pose very serious questions to the relevant leaders,” Zelensky said. “Each such question will be answered.”

Source: France 24

Boris Johnson is expected to resign his position as Conservative party leader today but stay on as Prime Minister until the fall, British media sources report. He is slated to make a statement in the early afternoon on Thursday. 

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has spoken to Queen Elizabeth as a courtesy ahead of an impending announcement about his resignation plan, ITV Deputy Political Editor Anushka Asthana said on Thursday.

Opposition Labour leader Keir Starmer called it “good news for the country” that Johnson was going to quit.

“But it should have happened long ago. He was always unfit for office. He has been responsible for lies, scandal and fraud on an industrial scale.”

“We don’t need to change the Tory at the top – we need a proper change of government,” Starmer said. “We need a fresh start for Britain.”

Weighing in from the Conservative party, Deputy Chairman Justin Tomlinson said “I was Team Boris, as the GE (general election) showed he was our star player who connected across traditional political divides. Yes there were ups and downs, but he turbo-charged social mobility and opportunity.

“His resignation was inevitable. As a Party we must quickly unite and focus on what matters. These are serious times on many fronts.”

First Minister of Scotland Nicola Sturgeon also weighed in via Twitter, questioning his continued presence as Prime Minister for the next three months. “There will be a widespread sense of relief that the chaos of the last few days (indeed months) will come to an end, though notion of Boris Johnson staying on as PM until autumn seems far from ideal, and surely not sustainable?”

Source: France 24

Britain’s finance and health ministers resigned on Tuesday, in what looked to be the final blow for Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s premiership after he had tried to apologise for the latest scandal to dog his administration.

Both finance minister Rishi Sunak and health minister Sajid Javid resigned in what appeared to be a choreographed release of letters to the prime minister, in which both took aim at his ability to run an administration that adhered to standards.

The resignations came as Johnson was apologising for what he said was a mistake for not realising that a former minister in charge of pastoral care was unsuitable for a job in government after complaints of sexual misconduct were made against him.

Both had formerly publicly supported Johnson during months of scandal over his administration’s conduct and a damning report into parties at his Downing Street office and residence that broke strict Covid-19 lockdown rules.

Sunak, who had reportedly clashed with the prime minister in private about spending, said: “For me to step down as Chancellor while the world is suffering the economic consequences of the pandemic, the war in Ukraine and other serious challenges is a decision that I have not taken lightly.”

“However, the public rightly expect government to be conducted properly, competently and seriously. I recognise this may be my last ministerial job, but I believe these standards are worth fighting for and that is why I am resigning.”

Javid said many lawmakers and the public had lost confidence in Johnson’s ability to govern in the national interest.

“I regret to say, however, that it is clear to me that this situation will not change under your leadership – and you have therefore lost my confidence too,” Javid said in a letter to Johnson.

Former Brexit minister Steve Barclay replaced Javid as health minister while education minister Nadhim Zahawi has been named new finance minister.

In the wake of those two resignations, one of the vice-chairs of Johnson’s Conservative Party, Bim Afolami, also left the government, TalkTV political editor Kate McCann said on Twitter on Tuesday.

And late in the evening, British MP for Cheltenham Alex Chalk joined the string of resignations, stepping down as solicitor general for England and Wales in protest at Johnson’s leadership.

“To be in government … cannot extend to defending the indefensible,” he wrote in a resignation letter posted on Twitter.

Source: REUTERS  

Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said on Tuesday that the Scottish parliament would publish an independence referendum bill with a planned date for a vote on secession to take place on Oct. 19, 2023.

Sturgeon said she would be writing to British Prime Minister Boris Johnson for permission to hold a consultative referendum, saying it was vital the vote was legal. She said the issue would be referred to the UK Supreme Court.

Voters in Scotland, which has a population of around 5.5 million, rejected independence in 2014. But Scotland’s semi-autonomous government says Britain’s departure from the EU, which was opposed by a majority of Scots, means the question must be put to a second vote.

Johnson and his ruling Conservative Party, which is in opposition in Scotland, strongly oppose a referendum, saying the issue was settled in 2014 when Scots voted against independence by 55% to 45%.

He has previously refused to issue a “Section 30” order to allow a referendum to take place.

Source: REUTERS

French President Emmanuel Macron addressed the nation for the first time on Wednesday since his centrist coalition lost control of parliament in Sunday elections. “We must learn to govern and legislate differently,” Macron acknowledged in his first public comments following the election setback.

The president said the opposition was ready to work with him on “major” issues and promised measures on inflation, climate change and unemployment sometime this summer. He went on to call on legislative groups to be clear in indicating “how far they are ready to go”.

Macron acknowledged that the parliamentary elections had highlighted social problems in France, but he called on the opposition parties to “leave in-fighting behind” and to move “beyond politics”. The current political impasse should not lead to “stagnation” but to renewed dialogue and a new “willingness to listen to each other”.

He added that he had been re-elected in April on a platform of “ambitious reform”, which he said he plans to carry out. Macron’s Ensemble (Together) coalition emerged as the largest party in the final round of parliamentary elections on Sunday but was dozens of seats short of keeping the parliamentary majority it had enjoyed for the last five years.

Macron’s centrist alliance finished 44 seats short of a majority in the lower house National Assembly as a new left-wing coalition known as NUPES made gains and the far-right party of Marine Le Pen posted its best legislative performance in its history.

The NUPES (New Popular Union) alliance – which brings together the La France Insoumise (France Unbowed), the Socialist Party, the Greens (Europe Ecologie-Les Verts) and the Communist Party under the leadership of eurosceptic far-left figurehead Jean-Luc Mélenchon – more than doubled the score of its combined parties in 2017.

The situation has called into question Macron’s ambitious plans for reform in his second term after his re-election in April – including a controversial measure to raise the retirement age from 62 to 65. It also marks the first time in 20 years that a president has not had an absolute majority in parliament.

Macron has been holding two days of talks with opposition leaders at the Élysee Palace, including with the head of the far-right National Rally party Marine Le Pen, to find a way out of the crisis.

Analysts have said the most viable solution would be a deal between Macron’s centrist alliance and the conservative Les Républicains, a party on the decline that nevertheless won 61 seats. But after talks with Macron on Tuesday, party leader Christian Jacob ruled out any kind of “pact” with Macron’s alliance and said his party prefers to remain in the opposition.

Macron’s remarks on Wednesday were his first public comments on the election results, a significant setback for a president with an ambitious domestic reform agenda and one who is keen to play a key role in international crises, including the war in Ukraine.

Source: AFP

The moment of truth for the embattled British Prime Minister, Boris Johnson at the end of a day rife with speculation about his political survival.

It’s a result that means Boris Johnson is now a weakened leader and with an uncertain future, although he himself doesn’t think so. But it’s exactly the stuff that matters to people that forced members of his own conservative party to call for a no-confidence vote: lock-down breaching parties held at government buildings at the height of Coronavirus pandemic when families were banned from visiting even dying relatives.

The sticky Partygate scandal played a major role in conservative MPs challenging Johnson’s position, but it was not the only reason.

Things came to a boiling point over the weekend when the prime minister was booed at an event celebrating the Queens 70-year-rule.

And prior to Monday’s vote, allegations of intimidation and arm-twisting by number 10 trying to get conservative MPs to change their minds, and a last ditch effort by the Boris Johnson himself writing to MPs begging for a second chance.

Boris Johnson has survived the confidence vote. But the considerable number of votes against him can pose a serious challenge to his premiership. That’s why some experts say he won’t be able to hold on to power for much longer.

Sourcies

The pomp and pageantry of the State Opening of Parliament at the Palace of Westminster in London traditionally takes longer than the speech itself.

But for nine short minutes on Tuesday, Britons were given a glimpse of their future without Queen Elizabeth II as head of state.

Ill health and old age forced the 96-year-old monarch to withdraw from outlining her government’s legislative agenda for only the third time since her reign began in 1952.

Instead it fell to her eldest son Prince Charles, 73, to deputise, in the most important state engagement yet in his record-breaking time as her heir.

When his mother dies, he will be king and opening parliament for a new session will be one of his most important constitutional duties as head of state.

Other than the last-minute change of personnel, there was little to distinguish the ceremony from previous ones in the putative “mother of all parliaments”.

Two mounted divisions of the Household Cavalry regiment formed a “secure passage” for the limousine carrying Charles and his wife Camilla from Buckingham Palace.

The red-coated Queen’s Body Guard of the Yeoman of the Guard — the “Beefeaters” — kept watch. Liveried parliamentary and government officials processed.

A ceremonial search of the cellars of parliament was conducted — a throwback to when a gunpowder plot was foiled before the opening of 1605.

The door of the House of Commons was slammed shut in the path of Black Rod, an official from the unelected upper House of Lords, to symbolise the independence of the elected lower chamber from the monarchy.

One member of parliament was held “hostage” at Buckingham Palace to ensure the safe return of the monarch, another throwback to more troubled times.

Elected members of parliament from the House of Commons are invited to the unelected upper chamber House of Lords to listen to the Queen’s Speech

Elected members of parliament from the House of Commons are invited to the unelected upper chamber House of Lords to listen to the Queen’s Speech Aaron Chown POOL/AFP

Then MPs filed into the Lords, their daywear in contrast to the peers in red and white ermine robes, to listen to the speech.

‘God save the Queen’

Charles, dressed in the ceremonial uniform of admiral of the fleet, complete with a sheathed sword, arrived to a trumpet fanfare.

The Prince of Wales has had a lifetime to prepare, showing no sign of nerves, smiling and occasionally stopping to chat as he made his way to the chamber and the platform bearing the consort’s throne.

Camilla sat to his left and his eldest son, Prince William, 39, to his right, getting his first taste of an occasion he will also have to perform one day.

The raised golden throne of the monarch, who was said to be watching on television from home, was removed. In its place was the crown on a velvet cushion.

At 11:34 am (1034 GMT), Charles began reading his mother’s words, written for her by the government.

“My Government’s priority is to grow and strengthen the economy and help ease the cost of living for families,” he read.

“My Government will level up opportunity in all parts of the country and support more people into work.

“My Ministers will continue to support the police to make the streets safer, and fund the National Health Service to reduce the COVID backlogs.

Queen Elizabeth II, who has been head of state since 1952, was said to have watched the ceremony on television from home.

“In these challenging times, my Government will play a leading role in defending democracy and freedom across the world, including continuing to support the people of Ukraine.”

At 11:43 am it was over. As he left, a military band played the national anthem, “God Save the Queen”.

Source: AFP

Prince Charles will replace his 96-year-old mother Queen Elizabeth II at Tuesday’s ceremonial opening of the UK parliament, Buckingham Palace said Monday, citing the monarch’s ongoing mobility issues.

“The Queen continues to experience episodic mobility problems, and in consultation with her doctors has reluctantly decided that she will not attend the State Opening of Parliament,” the palace said in a statement on the eve of the pomp-filled event.

“At Her Majesty’s request, and with the agreement of the relevant authorities, The Prince of Wales will read the Queen’s Speech on Her Majesty’s behalf,” it added, referring to her eldest son and heir to the throne, Charles.

The palace added that the Queen’s eldest grandson, Prince William, the Duke of Cambridge and next in the line of succession, would also attend the elaborate State Opening of Parliament ceremony.

As head of state, the Queen usually presides over the annual event, reading out her government’s legislative programme in an address from a gilded throne in the House of Lords.

But Buckingham Palace had not confirmed her attendance in the run-up to this year’s spectacle, which culminates in the so-called Queen’s Speech at around 11:30 am (1030 GMT) on Tuesday.

The monarch has rarely been seen in public since spending an unscheduled night in hospital in October last year, and has complained of difficulties standing and working, as well as a bout of Covid.

She has missed only two state openings during her record-breaking 70-year reign, in 1959 and 1963, when she was pregnant with Prince Andrew and then Prince Edward.

She has cut back on numerous public appearances in recent months, and last week the palace announced she will not attend this summer’s royal garden parties, usually a regular feature in her yearly diary.

The monarch recently returned to Windsor Castle after a week-long break on her Sandringham estate in Norfolk, eastern England, where she marked her 96th birthday in private on April 21.

Royal tradition since the 18th century has also seen the monarch have a second, official birthday, typically celebrated in warmer weather in June.

This year’s official birthday coincides with her Platinum Jubilee, and four days of public events from June 2 to 5 to mark her record-breaking 70th year on the throne.

Source: AFP