Blog

Boris Johnson – 2022 Final Speech as Prime Minister

The speech made by Boris Johnson, the outgoing Prime Minister, on 6 September 2022.

Well this is it folks

thanks to all of you for coming out so early this morning

In only a couple of hours from now I will be in Balmoral to see Her Majesty The Queen

and the torch will finally be passed to a new Conservative leader

the baton will be handed over in what has unexpectedly turned out to be a relay race

they changed the rules half-way through but never mind that now

and through that lacquered black door a new Prime Minister will shortly go to meet a fantastic group of public servants

the people who got Brexit done

the people who delivered the fastest vaccine roll out in Europe

and never forget – 70 per cent of the entire population got a dose within 6 months, faster than any comparable country

that is government for you – that’s this conservative government

the people who organised those prompt early supplies of weapons to the heroic Ukrainian armed forces,

an action that may very well have helped change the course of the biggest European war for 80 years

And because of the speed and urgency of what you did – everybody involved in this government

to get this economy moving again from July last year in spite of all opposition, all the naysayers

we have and will continue to have that economic strength

to give people the cash they need to get through this energy crisis that has been caused by Putin’s vicious war

And I know that Liz Truss and this compassionate Conservative government will do everything we can to get people through this crisis

And this country will endure it and we will win

and if Putin thinks that he can succeed by blackmailing or bullying the British people then he is utterly deluded

and the reason we will have those funds now and in the future is because we Conservatives understand the vital symmetry between government action

and free market capitalist private sector enterprise

we are delivering on those huge manifesto commitments

making streets safer – neighbourhood crime down 38 per cent in the last three years

13,790 more police on the streets

building more hospitals – and yes we will have 50,000 more nurses by the end of this parliament and 40 more hospitals by the end of the decade

putting record funding into our schools and into teachers’ pay

giving everyone over 18 a lifetime skills guarantee so they can keep upskilling throughout their lives

3 new high speed rail lines including northern powerhouse rail

colossal road programmes from the Pennines to Cornwall,

the roll-out of gigabit broadband up over the last three years, since you were kind enough to elect me, up from 7 per cent of our country’s premises having gigabit broadband to 70 per cent today.

And we are of course providing the short and the long term solutions for our energy needs

and not just using more of our own domestic hydrocarbons but going up by 2030 to 50 GW of wind power, that is half this country’s energy electricity needs from offshore wind

alone, a new nuclear reactor every year

and looking at what is happening in this country, the changes that are taking place,

that is why the private sector is investing more venture capital investment than China itself

more billion pound tech companies sprouting here than in France, Germany and Israel combined

and as a result unemployment as I leave office, down to lows not seen since I was about ten years old and bouncing around on a space hopper

and on the subject of bouncing around and future careers

let me say that I am now like one of those booster rockets that has fulfilled its function

and I will now be gently re-entering the atmosphere and splashing down invisibly in some remote and obscure corner of the pacific

And like Cincinnatus I am returning to my plough

and I will be offering this government nothing but the most fervent support

this is a tough time for the economy

this is a tough time for families up and down the country

we can and we will get through it and we will come out stronger the other side but I say to my fellow Conservatives it is time for the politics to be over folks

and it’s time for us all to get behind Liz Truss and her programme

and deliver for the people of this country

because that is what the people of this country want, that’s what they need and that’s what they deserve

I am proud to have discharged the promises I made my party when you were kind enough to choose me,

winning the biggest majority since 1987 and the biggest share of the vote since 1979.

delivering Brexit

delivering our manifesto commitments – including social care

helping people up and down the country

ensuring that Britain is once again standing tall in the world

speaking with clarity and authority

from Ukraine to the AUKUS pact with America and Australia

because we are one whole and entire United Kingdom whose diplomats, security services and armed forces are so globally admired

and as I leave I believe our union is so strong that those who want to break it up, will keep trying but they will never ever succeed

thank you to everyone behind me in this building for looking after me and my family over the last three years so well including Dilyn, the dog

and if Dilyn and Larry can put behind them their occasional difficulties, then so can the Conservative party

and above all thanks to you, the British people, to the voters for giving me the chance to serve

all of you who worked so tirelessly together to beat covid to put us where we are today

Together we have laid foundations that will stand the test of time

whether by taking back control of our laws or putting in vital new infrastructure

great solid masonry on which we will continue to build together

paving the path of prosperity now & for future generations

and I will be supporting Liz Truss and our new government every step of the way.

Thank you all very much.

September 6, 2022
Alok Sharma – 2022 Speech at the Africa Adaptation Summit Opening Ceremony

The speech made by Alok Sharma, the Cabinet Office, in Rotterdam in Netherlands, on 5 September 2022.

Patrick, thank you very much.

Presidents, your excellencies, sisters and brothers, if I may: I want to thank everyone for all the inspiring words we’ve heard, and indeed the pragmatic suggestions, as that’s what actually matters, Patrick, as you’ve said.

And I want to thank you, Patrick, you and your team at the Global Centre on Adaptation for putting this together, together with the African Union, with Akin and the African Development Bank.

This is a critical summit. I want to start by saying that, unlike Kristalina, I have no original jokes to offer. But I’ve noted the joke you made, and I’ll be using it – like a good politician, I’ll be repeating it and claiming it as my own at future events!

Friends, we are ten months since COP26. And, as I think we’ve heard, that was an important milestone on adaptation and the work that we do around this.

We have the Glasgow/Sharm-El-Sheik Work Programme, which has got going on the global goal on Adaptation.

And in Glasgow we also had the event – that I was very pleased to be part of – on launching the African Adaptation Acceleration Program. And Akin, you talked about the £20 million of UK funding for the program.

This is all about making sure that we are driving policy and project support to those working to design and implement transformational adaptation interventions.

And so whether that’s in agriculture or infrastructure, or innovative finance, as Ngozi said (and others have commented): at the end of the day, we have to see tackling climate change also as a growth opportunity. For jobs, for the economy.

And I think unless we encourage everyone to do that, we will not make the progress that we need to make.

Ban and other leaders have referenced the commitment that we got at COP of developed countries at least doubling their collective provision on adaptation finance for developing nations by 2025.

I can tell you that this wasn’t an easy process, but we got there. And the reality now is that countries have to deliver.

You will all have seen the OECD figures that have come out for 2020 on the $100bn goal. We are moving in the right direction when it comes to adaptation, but the reality is we are going to have to quicken that pace.

Patrick, you said not to talk about all the things that have been going wrong in the world when it comes to climate, so let me just say this: the one thing I think every single one of us can say, just looking in our own countries, our continents, is that the chronic threat of climate change has got worse since COP26.

Things aren’t getting better.

I could give you all the examples of Africa, which I’ve got here, but I’m not going to because you know all of this.

I can tell you from a UK point of view, for the first time, we had wildfires this summer; we have droughts being declared; we have climate emergencies in terms of temperature levels being declared this summer.

Climate change does not recognise borders. And I think the sooner every world leader recognises that, the better.

We’ve got sixty-two days to COP27. Patrick, you said we want to see what is actually going to happen.

One of the things that we did agree was that there would be a progress report on the $100bn delivery plan, that is being worked on by our friends in the Canadian and German governments.

We will publish that before COP27, so we will be able to see what progress is actually being made.

And of course, this is going to require all the providers – the MDBs and others – to set out clear, ambitious adaptation finance targets when we meet in Egypt.

And I also want to acknowledge the brilliant work that Kristalina and her team have done on the RSD; that is really quite remarkable, so thank you so much for all your leadership on that.

We know that the annual adaptation costs are expected to reach at least $140bn a year by 2030, and frankly public finance is not going to be enough. We are going to need private finance. And so in a way I agree; I wish we did have more of the private finance providers around this table.

You’ve all set out very clearly the challenges we have and how we rise to those. And I want to acknowledge, firstly, the enormous support and help that I’ve got from Amina over the past years in this role; but also to make the point that, as she said, we need to make sure that when we get to COP27, we have to demonstrate that what we achieved at COP26 is starting to be delivered.

I said in Glasgow that the pulse of 1.5 is weak. And I have to say to you friends, it does remain weak right now.

On the positive side, we were able to show in Glasgow that the multilateral system, however unwieldy, can work when we all understand that it’s in our collective self interest.

And so what we do need to ensure in the coming days, weeks, and two months to COP27, is that we’re delivering on adaptation.

I want to end by what Akin said. He said: ‘you’re all doers in this room’.

So I have to say friends, now we just need to get it done.

Thank you.

September 5, 2022
PRESS RELEASE : Prime Minister call with President Zelenskyy – 5 September 2022

The press release issued by Downing Street on 5 September 2022.

The Prime Minister spoke to the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, this afternoon to thank him for his leadership and friendship.

The Prime Minister made clear that he believed President Zelenskyy and his people can and will win the war in Ukraine.

President Zelenskyy thanked the Prime Minister for believing in Ukraine and its people and updated on the recent progress of his Armed Forces in the south of the country.

The Prime Minister said he was convinced the Ukrainian forces could continue to succeed in pushing back Russian forces and added that the UK remained steadfast in its support.

The Prime Minister told President Zelenskyy it had been a privilege to work with him and support him, and the leaders agreed to stay in close touch as friends.

September 5, 2022
PRESS RELEASE : Reappointment of lay panel member of the Judicial Conduct and Investigations Office

The press release issued by the Ministry of Justice on 5 September 2022.

The Lord Chancellor, in consultation with the Lord Chief Justice, has announced the reappointment of Bronwen Curtis CBE as a lay panel member of the Judicial Conduct and Investigations Office.

The reappointment will run from 1 July 2022 to 31 March 2023.

The Judicial Conduct and Investigations Office is an independent office which supports the Lord Chancellor and Lord Chief Justice in considering complaints about the personal conduct of judicial office-holders.

Appointments and reappointments are made by the Lord Chancellor and are regulated by the Commissioner for Public Appointments. The reappointment has been made in line with the Governance Code on Public Appointments.

Biography

Bronwen Curtis CBE has held leadership positions in both the private and public sector and most recently as Director, Human Resources and Organisational Development, Northampton General Hospital NHS Trust. Bronwen is a lay member of the Speakers Committee for IPSA and a member of the regulatory appointments panel for the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales. She is a former UK Board member of a global corporation and previously named Midlands Businesswoman of the Year.

September 5, 2022
Priti Patel – 2022 Letter of Resignation as Home Secretary

The letter of resignation sent by Priti Patel, the Home Secretary, to Boris Johnson, the outgoing Prime Minister, on 5 September 2022.

September 5, 2022
Priti Patel – 2022 Letter to Sir Mark Rowley

The letter sent by Priti Patel, the Home Secretary, to Sir Mark Rowley on 5 September 2022.

(in .pdf format)

September 5, 2022
Liz Truss – 2022 Victory Acceptance Speech as Prime Minister

The acceptance speech made by Liz Truss on 5 September 2022.

Well, thank you, Sir Graham. It’s an honour to be elected as leader of the Conservative and Unionist Party.

I’d like to thank the 1922 Committee, the party chairman and the Conservative Party for organising one of the longest job interviews in history. Thank you very much.

I’d also like to thank my family, my friends, my political colleagues and all of those who helped on this campaign. I’m incredibly grateful for all of your support.

I’d like to pay tribute to my fellow candidates, particularly Rishi Sunak. It’s been a hard-fought campaign. I think we have shown the depth and breadth of talent in our Conservative Party.

I also want to thank our outgoing leader, my friend, Boris Johnson. Boris, you got Brexit done. You crushed Jeremy Corbyn. You rolled out the vaccine and you stood up to Vladimir Putin. You are admired from Kyiv to Carlisle.

Friends and colleagues, thank you for putting your faith in me to lead our great Conservative Party, the greatest political party on earth.

I know that our beliefs resonate with the British people – our beliefs in freedom, in the ability to control your own life, in low taxes, in personal responsibility, and I know that’s why people voted for us in such numbers in 2019. And as your party leader, I intend to deliver what we promised those voters right across our great country.

During this leadership campaign, I campaigned as a conservative and I will govern as a conservative. My friends, we need to show that we will deliver over the next two years. I will deliver a bold plan to cut taxes and grow our economy. I will deliver on the energy crisis, dealing with people’s energy bills, but also dealing with the long-term issues we have on energy supply.

I will deliver on the National Health Service. We will deliver for all for our country and I will make sure that we use all the fantastic talents of the Conservative Party, our brilliant Members of Parliament, and peers, our fantastic councillors, our MSs, our MSPs, all of our councillors and activists and members right across our country, because, my friends, I know that we will deliver, we will deliver and we will deliver. And we will deliver a great victory for the Conservative Party in 2024, thank you.

September 5, 2022
PRESS RELEASE : Emergency support put in place for people fleeing Ukraine and entering the UK with their pets

The press release issued by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on 5 September 2022.

Streamlined system with the Government covering the costs of any necessary stays in quarantine for the pets of those fleeing Ukraine.

The Government has put in place new emergency support for those fleeing Ukraine with their pets. Using an emergency licence, people fleeing Ukraine can bring their pets to the UK with any quarantine costs met by the Government.

The Animal and Plant Health Agency is providing quick licence approvals and quarantine arrangements to avoid creating additional burdens or delays. The Government is also covering their vaccination, microchipping and quarantine costs, recognising that many individuals from Ukraine will not have been able to complete the full health preparations required for their pet on arrival.

The maximum stay in quarantine for a pet which has received no rabies vaccination is four months. Pets are considered on a case-by-case basis, with a shortened quarantine period for those that are vaccinated.

The Government has also introduced a new rabies blood test that will be able to detect existing rabies vaccinations faster. This will help in instances where refugees have travelled without vaccination paperwork.

Results can be turned around in a minimum of two days with some animals then moving to isolation if they are found to have rabies antibodies. This will help maintain our strict biosecurity measures and allow people to be reunited more quickly with their pets when possible.

We are working with vets and quarantine facilities to make sure that the arrival of Ukrainians in the UK is not delayed by the process to make arrangements for their pets.

Animal Welfare Minister Lord Goldsmith said:

“People having to flee Ukraine are in an appalling situation. I’m pleased that Ukrainian refugees will be able to bring their pets to the UK with any quarantine costs paid for by the Government.

As part of our new streamlined process, any animals which have already received some treatment may also have their stay in quarantine facilities reduced and be returned back to their owner as soon as possible.”

Before arrival, people leaving the Ukraine or their carrier should contact the Animal and Plant Health Agency at ukrainepettravel@apha.gov.uk or call +44 3000 200 301 option 2. They will then be able to confirm their approval for their emergency licence and organise any necessary stay in quarantine which is required to complete the rabies risk management process.

There is a limited amount of quarantine facilities in the UK and we will prioritise those fleeing Ukraine who wish to bring their pets with them.

The Chief Veterinary Officer previously urged rehoming charities to check online guidance and ensure rescue animals have the necessary vaccination paperwork after recent follow-up border checks by the APHA showed a shipment of 19 animals imported by a rescue charity travelled illegally on falsified rabies documentation.

Ukraine is an unlisted country regarding the movement of pets due to the confirmed presence of rabies. We have serious ongoing concerns around the onward commercial movement of animals between or from Ukraine and neighbouring countries and the health risk that presents. The UK has been rabies free for 100 years and the movement of large numbers of rescue animals who are entering Great Britain from high-risk rabies countries, without the correct health preparations, presents serious risks to biosecurity and public health. There has also been a number of serious instances of non-compliant imports, including those under falsified paperwork.

To ensure we continue to prioritise those fleeing Ukraine with their own pets, all commercial imports of dogs, cats and ferrets from Ukraine, Belarus, Poland and Romania have been temporarily suspended for a further eight weeks until 29th October 2022.

September 5, 2022
Boris Johnson – 2022 Letter to Veterans of the UK’s Nuclear Testing Programme

The letter sent by Boris Johnson, the Prime Minister, on 5 September 2022.

(in .pdf format)

September 5, 2022
Grant Shapps – 2022 Statement on TFL Long Term Funding Settlement

The statement made by Grant Shapps, the Secretary of State for Transport, in the House of Commons on 5 September 2022.

Following my statement to the House on 13 July (2022), I am writing to update the House that today we have agreed a new longer-term funding settlement between Transport for London (TfL) and government. The final extraordinary funding settlement expired on 3 August and I have agreed with the Mayor of London a new settlement until 31 March 2024 or until Transport for London reaches financial sustainability, whichever is the sooner.

This longer-term settlement includes over £1.1 billion (bn) of additional grant funding until March 2024 for London transport, which will unlock almost £3.6bn worth of critical infrastructure investment, with a number of projects set to revolutionise travel across the capital.

As a result of our longer-term settlement, major upgrades will be delivered for Londoners, including new Piccadilly line trains and the modernisation of the District, Metropolitan, Hammersmith and City and Circle lines – maintaining the London Underground’s world-class status. Further benefits include: supporting the long-awaited repair of Hammersmith Bridge; vital improvement to Elephant and Castle station and a London Overground extension between Gospel Oak and Barking Riverside to service more than 10,000 new homes in east London.

As part of the settlement, the Mayor will be required to continue work on the introduction of driverless trains on London Underground, in use on the Dockland Light Railway for more than 35 years. At a time when strikes are crippling both the Underground and national rail systems, never has this work been more important.

Alongside all of this is government’s continued commitment to mitigate TfL’s loss of passenger revenue from the ongoing uncertainty of demand following changes to travel patterns since the COVID-19 pandemic. None of this would have been possible without government funding.

The settlement letter requires Transport for London to modernise and control its operating costs, to make it a modern, effective, efficient and financially stable operator. It is a settlement that is fair and proportionate to London whilst also taking into account funding provided elsewhere in the country and the cost to the national taxpayer, at a time of great pressure on national finances.

It comes on top of the over £5bn of funding support the government has already provided to TfL since the beginning of the pandemic and government’s commitment to over £1 billion per year until 2025 for London transport through business rates retention.

Through all of this, government is continuing to work with the Mayor and TfL to ensure London’s transport system delivers for the public and businesses and contributes to the country’s economy.

September 5, 2022