Filters BETA
A year ago, Ben Wallace was seen as a potential candidate to replace Boris Johnson after the former PM’s resignation. Wallace was tipped as a possible favourite following his handling of the Russia-Ukraine war and topped a ConservativeHome poll of Tory party members about who should become the next prime minister.
He was a staunch remainer and ruled himself out of the race to become PM that was initially won by Liz Truss saying: “I didn’t want it enough. I think at my stage in life ... to want to be prime minister, you have to really, really want it. You have to want it above all else, to be ruthless at one level. I can be ruthless in certain things. But I have three teenage children, my wife and I had separated, so no one’s going to come and live with me in Chequers.”
Wallace did not go to university. He left school at 18 and became a ski instructor in Austria before attending the Royal Military Academy at Sandhurst. He joined the Scots Guards in 1991 and served in Germany, Cyprus, Belize and Northern Ireland. He left in 1998 to pursue a political career and was elected a year later as a member of the Scottish parliament, where he served a single term.
He later moved to Lancashire and was elected as the MP for Lancaster and Wyre in 2005. He was appointed defence minister four years ago and his profile rose with the war in Ukraine and the prior evacuation of UK forces from Afghanistan.
The prime minister, Rishi Sunak, will appoint a new defence secretary after Wallace’s formal resignation. He praised Wallace’s “strategic foresight” in dealing with Vladimir Putin and the Ukraine war and said he played an instrumental role in the evacuation of Afghanistan.
In his resignation letter, Wallace points to his handling of threats including the Salisbury poisonings, Afghanistan, Sudan and Ukraine and points to increased funding he secured for the armed forces. But he warns against cutting investment in the armed forces, saying he believes “over the next decade the world will get more insecure and more unstable”.
Ever since I joined the Army I have dedicated myself to serving my country. That dedication however comes at a personal toll to me and my family. After much reflection, I have taken the decision to ask that I be allowed to step down. I won my seat in 2005 and after so many years it is time for me to invest in the parts of life that I have neglected, and to explore new opportunities.
Ben Wallace has confirmed his resignation as defence secretary after four years in the post, saying the Ministry of Defence is “back on the path to being once again world class”.
The move is likely to lead to a mini-reshuffle, with the chief secretary to the Treasury, John Glen, and the former defence secretary Liam Fox in the mix to replace him.
Wallace played a key role in responding to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and was a close ally of Boris Johnson, but told the Sunday Times in July he was “not standing next time”. However he ruled out leaving parliament “prematurely” and forcing another byelection on Rishi Sunak, of whom he remains supportive.
https://news.google.com/rss/articles/CBMijQFodHRwczovL3d3dy50aGVndWFyZGlhbi5jb20vcG9saXRpY3MvbGl2ZS8yMDIzL2F1Zy8zMS9iZW4td2FsbGFjZS1yZXNpZ25zLWNvbnNlcnZhdGl2ZXMtY2FiaW5ldC1yZXNodWZmbGUtcmlzaGktc3VuYWstdWstcG9saXRpY3MtbGF0ZXN0LW5ld3PSAY0BaHR0cHM6Ly9hbXAudGhlZ3VhcmRpYW4uY29tL3BvbGl0aWNzL2xpdmUvMjAyMy9hdWcvMzEvYmVuLXdhbGxhY2UtcmVzaWducy1jb25zZXJ2YXRpdmVzLWNhYmluZXQtcmVzaHVmZmxlLXJpc2hpLXN1bmFrLXVrLXBvbGl0aWNzLWxhdGVzdC1uZXdz?oc=5
2023-08-31 07:34:00Z
2384609878
Tidak ada komentar:
Posting Komentar