Rishi Sunak heads into his first full week as Prime Minister with pressure mounting over his Cop27 snub and the reappointment of Suella Braverman as the Home Secretary. Reports suggest he is considering a U-turn on his decision not to attend the United Nations climate conference in Egypt next week.
His earlier insistence that he must focus on the “depressing domestic challenges” rather than go to the summit sparked a general backlash, including within Tory ranks. The Government’s climate tsar Alok Sharma said he was “disappointed” by the move, while Tory former chancellor George Osborne asked why Mr Sunak would “trash” the party’s record on the environment.
Questions about Ms Braverman’s return to the Home Office, six days after she was forced out, also continue to dog the Prime Minister. A leaked email threw fresh doubts over the Home Secretary’s claim that she rapidly reported her mistake in sending a sensitive document to a Tory backbencher and parliamentary staffer from a personal account without permission.
The email, obtained by the BBC, appeared to contradict her timeline, as Ms Braverman asked the recipient to “ignore and delete” her original message several hours after it was sent. Mr Sunak has resisted calls for an inquiry into the matter as Labour prepared to force the Government to release risk assessments of the breach in Parliament.
The Government is also facing demands for an investigation into another security issue, amid reports that Liz Truss, the former prime minister, had her phone hacked by Russian agents. Ms Braverman also came under further scrutiny for her handling of the worsening conditions at the Manston asylum processing centre in Kent, where alleged overcrowding intensified as 700 people were moved there from a Dover migrant centre that was firebombed.
She was considering housing migrants in hotels, among the general public, instead of reserving entire hotels, in a bid to relieve the overcrowding, according to a report in the Telegraph. Ms Braverman allegedly failed to heed legal advice that migrants were being detained at the facility for unlawfully long periods, the Sunday Times reported.
But Cabinet colleague Michael Gove rejected claims that she ignored any advice, defending her as a “first-rate, front-rank politician”. Mr Gove also urged people to judge the Government “by our actions” on the environment rather than attendance at Cop27.
But Lord Deben, chairman of the Climate Change Committee, warned that Britain's bid to tackle emissions was “off track”. The peer told the Independent it would be “very valuable” for Mr Sunak to go to the climate summit.
Allies of the Prime Minister indicated he might go after all, the Financial Times and the "i" newspaper reported. The sources said that while dealing with the economic crisis as a priority, he could go to Egypt if enough “progress” was made on preparing the November 17 budget.
Mr Sharma, the outgoing Cop26 president who was recently demoted from Cabinet, told the Sunday Times he was “pretty disappointed that the Prime Minister is not going”, saying attendance would send a signal about the UK’s “renewed commitment on this issue”. Downing Street has been contacted for comment.
Mr Osborne said Mr Sunak had “mishandled” the situation. Touting the Tories’ environmental record, the ex-chancellor told Channel 4’s The Andrew Neil Show: “Why trash that because you don’t want to get on a plane to Egypt?”
Speculation that Boris Johnson, Mr Sunak’s predecessor at No 10, could go to the UN conference appeared to have increased pressure on the Prime Minister. It added to a wider dispute over UK representation, after King Charles was advised by Downing Street not to attend the Sharm El-Sheikh summit.
The King will host a reception for 200 guests, including US climate envoy John Kerry, at Buckingham Palace on Friday to mark the climate conference, with Mr Sunak due to be present to say a few words.
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