Whitehall’s New Overlords: A Cabinet of Control

With the dust beginning to settle on the latest reshuffle, it’s time to take a closer look at our new—and not so new—overlords in the Whitehall bureaucracy.

David Lammy – Deputy Prime Minister & Justice Secretary In David Lammy we now find the roles of Deputy PM and Justice Secretary rolled into one—a troubling centralisation of power given the intellectual faculties of the man behind the position. Lammy’s record on Mastermind speaks volumes: Henry VII succeeding Henry VIII, Marie Antoinette winning a Nobel Prize, and Red Leicester identified as a blue cheese. But while comic ignorance might once have been harmless, Lammy’s authoritarian instincts are not. He has long championed restrictions on speech and openly called for a second Brexit referendum. Under his stewardship, expect an even deeper politicisation of the judiciary. Shabana Mahmood – Home Secretary On Mahmood’s very first day as Home Secretary, 1,000 illegal migrants crossed the Channel in small boats. Yet we are expected to believe she will “smash the gangs,” despite consistently voting against tougher asylum laws. Only weeks ago she threatened to strip criminals of basic freedoms such as buying train tickets or attending football matches. At a time when speech and dissent are considered criminal acts, such rhetoric edges closer to fascism than justice. Yvette Cooper – Foreign Secretary Cooper’s record as Home Secretary on illegal migration requires no introduction. Perhaps that explains her redeployment abroad. But her commitment to democracy has always been conditional. To The Guardian she presents as a liberal; when it comes to China she is a silent enabler. Cooper supported the CCP’s mega embassy project and has remained mute on the plight of Jimmy Lai, a British citizen imprisoned by Beijing. Her own enthusiasm for criminalising speech does little to reassure. Peter Kyle – Business and Trade Secretary Few promotions are more concerning than Peter Kyle’s. This is the same Kyle who dismissed opposition to the Online Safety Act as siding with “child predators”—a striking accusation for a man who once campaigned with convicted paedophile Ivor Caplin. Economically, his hypocrisy is no less obvious. In 2023 he backed a windfall tax on oil and gas firms, an odd position for someone purporting to champion business and free markets. Steve Reed – Housing Secretary Reed’s arrival at Housing signals a direct assault on property rights. A supporter of rent controls and banning no-fault evictions, he offers nothing meaningful on boosting housing supply. Labour’s pledge of 1.5 million new homes continues to look more like wishful thinking than policy. Patrick Vallance – Science, Research and Innovation The appointment of Lord Vallance is a stark reminder that Labour will happily exploit the undemocratic and archaic practice of parachuting peers into cabinet when it suits. Vallance will now lead science and innovation. Expect subsidies, heavy-handed regulation, and coercive Net Zero transition policies. More disturbing still, the appointment of Lord Lockdown signals that those who justified the most sweeping peacetime restrictions on liberty are now rewarded with enduring authority. And the Rest - A glance across the cabinet reveals unanimity: every single one backed lockdown. Not one has criticised the Online Safety Act. That tells you everything you need to know about Labour’s view of civil liberties. God help us.



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