Promising dramatic spending hikes, Boris Johnson has moved the Conservative Party to the left. But while the prime minister is still basking in the success of having finally guided Britain out of the European Union, not everyone is happy about his spending plans.
Evincing as much, Johnson lost the most powerful member of his Cabinet on Thursday, when Chancellor of Exchequer Sajid Javid resigned. Javid said he could not accept Johnson’s demand to replace his senior advisers with No. 10 Downing Street approved advisers. But that’s just the paper excuse. What’s really going on here is Johnson’s effort to ensure he has near total control over where the government budget is spent. This is an important point in the United Kingdom, in that chancellors have traditionally held significant sway over government allocations.
