MP SAJID Javid had a thinly-veiled swipe at No. 10 special adviser Dominic Cummings for asking him to sack his team of advisers.
The dig came in Javid’s personal statement to the Commons about resigning as Chancellor of the Exchequer.
Speaking earlier this afternoon Mr Javid stopped short of ‘dwelling on all the personalities involved in his decision’ but added: “The comings (Cummings) and goings, if you will” – seemingly a reference to Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s chief adviser ‘Dominic Cummings’.
There has been speculation the decision to ask Mr Javid to sack his team had come from Cummings rather than the PM himself.
Also in the speech Mr Javid said: “In Government, advisers advise, ministers decide and ministers decide on their advisers.
“I couldn’t see why the Treasury, with the vital role it plays, should be the exception.
“The Chancellor like all Government ministers has to be able to a Prime Minister so he is speaking ‘truth to power’.
“I believe the arrangement proposed would significantly inhibit that and it would not have been in the national interest.
“So while I was continually grateful for the trust of the Prime Minister in wanting to appoint me, I am afraid these were conditions I could not have accepted in good conscience.”
Mr Javid also thanked his colleagues and family for all their messages of support since his decision.
On Rishi Sunak he added: “I very much hope the new Chancellor will be given the space to do his job without fear or failure.
“And I know my right honourable friend and member for Richmond is more than capable of rising to the challenge.”
