2023-07-16 04:17:12
July 16, 2023 at 13:13
By Ioni Wells and Paul Seddon BBC News
Wallace, who has been defense minister for four years, said he would not run in the next general election. However, he said he would not resign as MP before the expiration of his term.
Mr Wallace has served as defense minister under three successive prime ministers and has played a major role in Britain’s response to the war in Ukraine.
Political sources have told the BBC that the next cabinet reshuffle is expected in September this year.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is said to be planning a major reshuffle of key ministers, but no specific date has been set.
Wallace said he is leaving politics because he has taken a toll on his family. A source close to the defense minister said he was not dissatisfied with Sunak’s leadership.
Wallace’s local Wyre and Preston North constituency will disappear in the next general election as a result of the redistricting. The Defense Minister told The Sunday Times that he would not seek to run in another constituency.
There has been speculation for some time that Mr Wallace intends to leave the Cabinet. Remarks to the Sunday Times are in the form of acknowledging it.
Wallace told Prime Minister Sunak on June 16 of his intention to resign, according to the BBC.
“I entered politics in 1999 when I became a member of the Scottish Parliament,” Wallace told the Sunday Times. “It’s been 24 years, and more than seven of those years I’ve always had three phones by my bed. ” he said.
Wallace told the paper that he would continue to work on increasing the defense budget, which he has been demanding since becoming defense minister.
Defense Minister Wallace told reporters at the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit in Vilnius, Lithuania on May 11-12 that Ukraine should be more “thankful” for the help NATO has already given. speak to. Prime Minister Sunak distanced himself from his remarks, saying it was not the government’s official position.
Regarding the NATO summit, Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky said that NATO would not indicate when Ukraine would be allowed to join NATO after the end of the war with Russia.Announcing a comment that it is ‘ridiculous’. Wallace’s remarks were made at a small gathering separate from the summit’s main sessions, amidst the ongoing bargaining.
The defense minister tweeted on the 15thhe wrote in Ukrainian, “My remarks on aid to Ukraine have not been accurately conveyed.” “They said that sometimes Ukraine needs to realize that they are not doing it. It was not so much a statement about the government as it was about citizens and parliamentarians,” he said.
Wallace continued to post comments in Ukrainian. “British citizens and all parties in parliament support the government’s efforts to provide Ukraine with much-needed assistance. Among them, it is exceptionally high,” he wrote.
“My remarks meant that it’s important for you to reach out to the citizens of the country who still need to be persuaded, rather than just talking among themselves,” he explained.
Wallace added: “I personally will continue to support Ukraine for as long as necessary. However, the country’s parliament often has different competing agendas, and Ukraine and the UK are willing to continue with the current strong support.” , we must work with facts and friendship.”
Ukrainian war raises public profile
Wallace was widely reported to be aiming for NATO secretary general.But ahead of Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg’s announcement of his continuation, Mr WallaceBritish magazine The Economist in June this yearsaid he would not be his successor.
Mr. Wallace was a vocal advocate of aid to Ukraine and was heavily involved in the supply of weapons and vehicles.
At the start of the Russian invasion, he was Britain’s Defense Minister, and his profile increased both at home and abroad.
He was popular within the Conservative Party and was once thought to be a strong candidate if he ran for leadership, but he never ran.
Wallace told The Sunday Times that, despite serving the longest tenure as defense secretary in a Conservative government, he is aware of how it affected his family.
“I am proud to have worked with so many great people and contributed to the defense of this great country, but I am very sad that I put that work before my family.”
He was an officer in the British Army Scots Guards before entering politics as a member of the Scottish Parliament in 1999.
First elected to the House of Commons in 2005. He has served as Minister of State for Northern Ireland and Minister of State for the Home Office.
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