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Boris Johnson was on his last day as British Prime Minister. He said goodbye to his staff in Downing Street and gave a final speech to the nation. A farewell speech.
It was the local choreography of coming and going, the staged transfer of power. At 07:30 sharp local time, Boris Johnson stepped out of the famous door in Downing Street in London for the last time and delivered his farewell speech as Prime Minister.
Legend:
Boris Johnson trumped again in his last speech to the nation. He and his wife Carrie Johnson then left 10 Downing Street.
Keystone/Neil Hall
He reviewed his successes, his political legacy, and how he would like to go down in the history books one day. His government completed Brexit, vaccinated the population faster than any other country and stood up to Putin. This is “conservative politics at its best”.
Considered construction sites and promises
Johnson thrived standing out in the rain. In verbal acrobatic fireworks, he listed a seemingly endless list of his real and supposed merits as prime minister. And he has remained true to himself: Johnson exaggerated and fibbed.
I feel like one of those big booster rockets that has done its job, has now burned out and is gently re-entering the atmosphere.
Whether a gigantic bridge over the Irish Sea, high-speed trains to the north of England or the fastest internet to all corners of the country; many of his election promises remained planned construction sites and promises. The outgoing prime minister was undeterred by such details. The Conservative government is on course, said Johnson.
“I feel like one of those big booster rockets that has done its job, has now burned out and is gently re-entering the atmosphere and sinking somewhere in a lonely and unknown corner of the Pacific.” He has done his duty and will now retire. Nobody really wants to believe this from the busy Boris Johnson, who wanted to be king of the world as a child.
Consistent behavior was never his forte, nor was insight into his own mistakes. He didn’t say it out loud, but there was a feeling he still couldn’t quite understand why he had to leave Downing Street. Then he did it anyway.
Just before 8am, Johnson traveled to Scotland with his wife Carrie to bid the Queen farewell.
Purposeful optimism in the inaugural speech
But not only Johnson traveled to Scotland, but also Liz Truss. Truss was officially appointed Prime Minister by Queen Elizabeth II at Balmoral Castle and tasked with forming a government.
Truss has since returned to London and delivered her first address to the nation at Downing Street. She almost stood in the rain too. But at the last moment the sky cleared and she delivered the speech on dry land.
She once again praised her predecessor. It is an honor to take over the position from him. The world is now in the midst of a crisis and will do everything to lead and support the British people out of this crisis. Her inaugural speech was marked by a great deal of purposeful optimism. For example, Truss said at the end: “No matter how violent the storm is, the British will always be stronger.”
Legend:
Truss wants to announce the composition of her cabinet this evening.
Keystone/Andrew Milligan
SRF: Will Truss only appoint people to government posts who sided with you during the election campaign?
London correspondent Patrik Wülser: She is urged not to do that. Truss wasn’t the parliamentary group’s first choice, it was Rishi Sunak. That is why many Tories are pushing for a mixed cabinet with people from all wings of the Conservative party.
But one doubts whether Truss actually wants people at her table who have publicly questioned her competence in recent weeks. What is fairly certain, however, is that for the first time the most important posts in this cabinet will not simply be held by white men. Chancellor of the Exchequer is likely to be Kwasi Kwarteng, a son of immigrants from Ghana.
The Minister of the Interior and the Minister of Foreign Affairs will probably also belong to an ethnic minority. A thoroughly historic day for the former colonial power.