Earlier today, as Westminster reacted to Boris Johnson’s announcement that he will stand for parliament in 2015, David Cameron carried out the mini-reshuffle necessitated by Baroness Warsi’s resignation. Baroness Anelay, previously Lords Chief Whip, has replaced the Tory peer as Minister of State at the Foreign Office (attending cabinet), and Lord Taylor has taken Anelay’s old post. Lord Bates has replaced Taylor as Under Secretary of State at the Home Office.
But the most eye-catching change is the transfer of Warsi’s faith brief (which she hung onto after her demotion in 2012) to Eric Pickles. The Communities Secretary has regularly used his platform to attack secularists, declaring earlier this year that Britain is a “Christian nation” and that “militant atheists” should “get over it”. That outburst was prompted by a legal bid by the National Secular Society to prevent local councils including prayers as part of their official agenda. He said:
Content from our partners
