Boris Johnson to take over as British PM
24 Jul 2019
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Boris Johnson Britain's incoming prime minister and new Tory leader is all set to assume office today, hoping to end months of acrimony in British parliament over former prime minister Theresa May’s proposals for Britain’s exit from the European Union.
Boris Johnson
Outgoing Prime Minister Theresa May will pass the baton to Boris Johnson, who will be appointed the new Prime Minister later this evening.
At noon British Summer Time (BST), or 4.30 pm IST, May is scheduled to oppose the Labour Party in the House of Commons in her final session of the Prime Minister’s Questions. Johnson is not expected to be present as he begins to reshuffle MPs to form his new cabinet and government.
The Prime Minister-elect, who concluded a successful campaign with a comfortable win with 66.4 per cent of the vote, has said he would increase the representation of women and ethnic minorities in his cabinet to, "truly reflect modern Britain", British media reported, quoting sources close to Johnson.
While his short victory speech as prime minister-designate gave few clues as to how he will persuade the EU to renegotiate, he stated, "Dude, we are going to energise the country!"
"We are going to get Brexit done on 31 October. We are going to take advantage of all the opportunities. It will bring in a new spirit of can-do and we are once again going to believe in ourselves and what we can achieve, and like some slumbering giant, we are going to rise and ping off the guy ropes of self-doubt and negativity," he said.
Most newspapers called Boris, 'dude', an acronym coined by Johnson in an apparent attempt to make a catchy campaign: DUD, 'Deliver, Unite, Defeat' and now with his victory speech, he added an E saying, "I know some wag has already pointed out that Deliver, United and Defeat was not the perfect acronym for an election campaign, since unfortunately, it spells DUD, but they forgot the final E my friends, E for Energise. I say to all the doubters: Dude, we are going to energise the country."
The Sun's front page published this particular gesture's picture with the caption, "Hey Dude! Don't make it bad", a wordplay on The Beatles' song 'Hey Jude'. The entire headline reads: “Naa naa naa na-na-na-naa Hey Dude! Don’t make it bad”.
The Telegraph carried the front page with a 'Dude', with an asterisk down the page to spell out the acronym’s promise. The lead carries a story about how Johnson is to appoint Brexiteer Cabinet as he spends his first 100 days in 10 Downing focusing solely on leaving the EU on 31 October.
The front page of tomorrow’s Daily Telegraph: 'Prime Minister Johnson to appoint Brexiteer Cabinet as he spends his first 100 days in No 10 focusing solely on leaving the EU on October 31'
The Times lead story was on Boris Johnson promoting a 47-year-old Brexit hardline Priti Patel as new home secretary on Wednesday as he builds a cabinet to sell an optimistic vision of Brexit to “modern Britain”.
The Daily Mail UK also published its front page with the same picture of Boris' awkward salute, along with a photo of that compares the gesture to that used by the late comedians Morecambe and Wise. Its headline is a spin-off on a song performed by the duo: “Now bring us sunshine!”
The Daily Mirror seemed disappointed at the outcome as it dug out unflattering pictures of Johnson including the infamous photo of him in a blue helmet, strapped in a harness, dangling from a zip wire, waving British flags. “Boris Johnson, prime minister. It’s really not funny anymore.” read the headline.
The Independent, a British online newspaper, had a strikingly dark cartoon by Dave Brown, of Johnson as former prime minister Winston Churchill, smoking a cigar while the country burns in the background. 'Just 100 days to avert no-deal disaster. A border conundrum that cannot be solved. And the new prime minister?' says the headline.
The Guardian described him as "Someone who could easily be rejected as a Guess Who character for looking too ridiculous is now to lead the country. A man whose DNA profile is the exact same as a Bernard Manning joke," with the headline: Boris Johnson: the clown is crowned as the country burns in hell.
While The New York Times described the new prime minister as someone 'who has an air of personal disorganization, tends to lose things, and used to lug his belongings to and from work in a backpack slung over his shoulders.'
The Daily Star is the only publication that decided not to lead with the political story, instead running a story about Coronation Street and previewing its third-day story on the seagull that allegedly snatched a chihuahua in Devon.
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Former international development secretary, Priti Patel, who was sacked by May in 2017 after revelations that she held unauthorised meetings with Israeli politicians, has been billed to return, perhaps as home secretary. There has been speculation also about a promotion for employment minister Alok Sharma. Home secretary Sajid Javid could replace Philip Hammond as Chancellor.
Around 2 pm BST (6.30 pm IST), May is expected to give her final speech outside 10 Downing Street. She will then travel to Buckingham Palace to officially resign to the Queen.
A short while after at Buckingham Palace, the Queen will appoint Boris Johnson as Prime Minister in front of an audience. Thereafter, Johnson will proceed to Number 10, and will address the British people for the first time as Prime Minister at 4 pm BST, or 8.30 pm IST.
At the end of his speech, Johnson will symbolically enter 10 Downing Street, where he will receive a security briefing, according to Sky News.
At 10 pm BST (2.30 am IST Thursday) the new PM will announce his senior cabinet colleagues. He will address Parliament on his Brexit plans on Thursday before the House of Commons rises for its summer recess.
