British Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s director of policy, Munira Mirza has resigned over some of the prime minister’s statements about Labour Party leader Keir Starmer. It was one of five recent top-staff resignations at 10 Downing Street.
Prime Minister Johnson has appointed Member of Parliament Andrew Griffith as his new policy director. Griffith has vowed to return the conservative government to “core conservative values.”
Writing for Conservative Home on February 7th, Griffith explains the prime minister’s agenda going forward:
[Families] want to hear about our plans to grow employment, tackle the NHS backlog, control our borders, make their streets safer, bring down the cost of living and return rapidly to the point when we can cut taxes to let everyone keep more of their own money.
Griffith also promises to deliver “the tangible opportunities from Brexit.” The British economy has already benefited from its EU secession, with stronger economic growth than almost every EU member state, with no net loss of jobs and with resilient business investments.
Highlighting his personal background, Griffith notes that he entered politics as a member of parliament after a business career:
I know first-hand that prosperity is created not by government but by the ‘fly wheel’ of enterprise and entrepreneurship. … A competitively regulated, low tax and high skills economy trading globally has always been the right combination for economic success.
According to MSN.com, Griffith has a long background in business. At the age of 37 he was appointed chief financial officer for Sky television, making him the youngest of his kind at any major British corporation. He has previously served as chairman of the Centre for Policy Studies, a prominent British center-right think tank.
The shift in policy leadership under Boris Johnson comes on the heels of widespread criticism of parties at the prime minister’s residence during pandemic lockdowns, and two years ahead of the prime minister’s expected run for re-election.
