Double blow for UK's Johnson as two Cabinet ministers quit
[PHOTO/AGENCIES]
The United Kingdom's finance minister, Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak, and Health Secretary Sajid Javid both resigned from Prime Minister Boris Johnson's government on Tuesday evening.
The resignations followed a scandal in which Johnson apologized for his handling of misconduct allegations against Chris Pincher, a lawmaker and former senior official within their ruling Conservative Party.
Javid told Johnson in his resignation letter it had been "an enormous privilege" to serve as secretary of state for health and social care, but that he could "no longer continue in good conscience".
He said the Conservative Party "may not have always been popular, but we have been competent in acting in the national interest. Sadly, in the current circumstances, the public are concluding that we are now neither".
"The vote of confidence last month showed that a large number of our colleagues agree," Javid said. "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."
Sunak's letter took a similar stance, saying: "The public rightly expect government to be conducted properly, competently, and seriously."
He added that he believes "these standards are worth fighting for and that is why I am resigning".
Sunak noted the UK is currently "facing immense challenges".
"I publicly believe the public are ready to hear that truth. Our people know that if something is too good to be true then it's not true. They need to know that, while there is a path to a better future, it is not an easy one," he wrote. "In preparation for our proposed joint speech on the economy next week, it has become clear to me that our approaches are fundamentally too different."
Sunak went on to say he was "sad to be leaving government" but that he had "reluctantly come to the conclusion that we cannot continue like this".