New Times,
New Thinking.

  1. Politics
  2. UK Politics
21 December 2017

Why don’t all ministers resign for lying? The mystery of the sackable offence

Damian Green goes for “misleading statements”, but Boris Johnson and David Davis keep their jobs. How come?

By Anoosh Chakelian

What makes a sackable offence for a politician these days? It’s a mystery we’ve discussed on the New Statesman podcast a number of times in recent weeks, due to the apparent double standards in Theresa May’s hiring and firing policy.

The latest example is the departure of First Secretary Damian Green, who was forced to resign from cabinet due to “misleading” statements about police claims that porn was discovered on his office computer.

Subscribe to The New Statesman today from only £8.99 per month
Content from our partners
More than a landlord: A future of opportunity
Towards an NHS fit for the future
How drones can revolutionise UK public services