UK Transport Secretary Louise Hague arrives to attend a pre-Budget cabinet meeting in London on Wednesday, October 30, 2024.
Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Britain’s Transport Secretary Louise Hague resigned after pleading guilty to misleading police on her work phone several years ago, in a further blow to Prime Minister Keir Starmer.
Her resignation is the first from Prime Minister Starmer’s top cabinet team since his landslide victory in July’s election, and is the first from Starmer’s top cabinet team since he won a landslide in July’s election. The announcement was made following media reports that he had been sentenced to dismissal.
In a letter to Mr Starmer on Thursday, November 28, Mr Haig told police he had lost his mobile phone during a “horrifying” robbery during a night out in 2013, but later told police he had lost his mobile phone. He said he realized his cell phone was still at home. .
In a resignation letter shared by Starmer’s office early on Friday, Mr Hague said he was resigning because the issue “inevitably disrupts the work of the government and the delivery of the policies we are committed to”.
“While I remain fully committed to our political project, I now believe that we can best support you from outside of government,” she said.
Mr Starmer thanked Mr Haig for his work and all he has done “to deliver the Government’s ambitious transport plans”.
The opposition Conservative Party said Ms Hay had “done the right thing” but questioned why Mr Starmer had appointed her when he was clearly aware of her fraud conviction.
“The onus is on Keir Starmer to explain this clear failure of judgment to the British people,” a Conservative Party spokesperson said in a statement.
Mr Haig’s resignation is a further blow to the Labor leader, whose party’s approval ratings have plummeted since July.
Shortly after coming to power, the Labor government came under fire for restricting fuel payments for the elderly and accepting donations for clothing and entertainment.
Since then, the government has angered farmers over changes to inheritance tax rules, and many businesses are unhappy with Labour’s first budget, in which the Chancellor of the Exchequer included tax increases, mainly on businesses and the wealthy.
Mr Hague, who was first elected in 2015 and held senior positions under Mr Starmer and former left-wing Labor leader Jeremy Corbyn, said the phone incident was a “real mistake” and that “there was no good to be gained” from it. ” he said.
