Is Theresa May about to sack Priti Patel?
Conflicting stories emerge about how much the PM knew about Israeli meetings
Priti Patel is flying back to the UK after cutting short an official trip to Africa on the orders of Theresa May following fresh revelations that the International Development Secretary held “secret” meetings with Israeli ministers in September.
But there is much media speculation about whether Patel withheld information from Downing Street about her high-level meetings or, in fact, kept the PM fully informed - with “unnamed sources” briefing both for and against the embattled minister while she was mid-flight.
Patel apologised on Monday after it emerged that she met with Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu and other officials during a trip to Israel in August - but details of two further undisclosed meetings have since emerged.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Patel reportedly met Israel’s public security minister, Gilad Erdan, in Parliament on 7 September, and foreign ministry official Yuval Rotem in New York on 18 September, says Sky News.
So did Patel fail to mention the Erdan meeting to May before apologising on Monday, as the website says? The PM reportedly reprimanded Patel over the August meetings, which took place during what Patel described as a “family holiday”.
“I would have thought this was a resigning matter,” Labour MP Maria Eagle told HuffPost.
But the Jewish Chronicle’s Stephen Pollard claims that Downing Street was informed about Patel’s meeting with Netanyahu hours after it occurred, and that May did know about the two additional meetings held in September.
Information from two senior sources indicates “that Ms Patel did disclose the meeting with Mr Rotem but was told by No. 10 not to include it as it would embarrass the Foreign and Commonwealth Office”, says Pollard.
No. 10 has dismissed the Jewish Chronicle report as inaccurate, according to Sky News reporter Jason Farrell.
Patel allegedly breached the ministerial code by holding the Israeli meetings without informing the Foreign Office or the Prime Minister in advance. However, May has been slow to discipline her, having already lost one Tory Cabinet minister - former defence secretary Michael Fallon, who quit last week - to a growing Westminster sex scandal, and with more ministers likely to be sacked, The Daily Telegraph says.
“Theresa May’s weakness as PM has allowed her most ambitious ministers to do their own thing,” The Guardian reports. “As a prime minister drained of authority struggles to hold her party together, ambitious ministers feel increasingly able to cock a snook with impunity.”
As Patel endures a nine-hour flight back from Kenya after less than a day in Africa, flight tracker website Flightradar24 revealed on Twitter that 22,000 people are following the progress of her plane.
Meanwhile, her fate and career prospects also remain up in the air.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
New coalition goes after the mighty lobbying power of AIPAC
Talking Points Reject AIPAC, a collection of more than 20 progressive groups, works to shield lawmakers critical of Israel's war on Gaza
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Will Aukus pact survive a second Trump presidency?
Today's Big Question US, UK and Australia seek to expand 'game-changer' defence partnership ahead of Republican's possible return to White House
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
What solutions for Gaza have the international community put forward?
Today's Big Question Demilitarised zone and transforming Gaza into a rich waterfront property empire are among more outlandish ideas
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
-
Farewell to Theresa May: a PM consumed by Brexit
Talking Point Maidenhead MP standing down at next general election
By The Week UK Published
-
How is aid getting into Gaza right now?
Today's Big Question The international effort to provide Palestinians with essentials during wartime has become a Gordian knot of logistics
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
'Violent resistance has failed Palestinians'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Harold Maass, The Week US Published
-
Is the West Bank's economy on the cusp of collapse?
Today's Big Question The seismic waves of Israel's ongoing siege of Gaza are being felt across the occupied West Bank, where Palestinians are scrambling for financial stability in a time of war.
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Biden and Bibi duel with incompatible 'red lines' over Gaza
Talking Points The White House and Prime Minister's office have set the stage for a major showdown between allied nations, even if the specifics — and their consequences — are unclear.
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published