Rishi Sunak has been criticised by senior Tories over his decision to appoint Grant Shapps as the country’s new Defence Secretary.
Despite weeks of speculation about who would replace Ben Wallace in the critical Cabinet role, Mr Shapps’ name was not considered by the press until a report late yesterday evening tipping him for the top job.
His appointment is perceived by many as the Prime Minister placing personal political allegiances over choosing someone more suited to the role.
Many of those named previously floated to replace Mr Wallace – including John Glenn, James Heappey and Jeremy Quin – all had more defence experience than Mr Shapps.
His appointment also raised eyebrows in Tory circles as it further highlights the political chaos of the last year – Mr Shapps has had five different Cabinet roles in the last 12 months under three different Prime Ministers, namely Transport, Home, Business, Environment and now Defence.
A Tory MP and former Minister told the Express that Mr Shapps’ appointment shows Mr Sunak wanted someone who would “obey” him on public spending.
They predicted: “He’ll do exactly what Rishi tells him, which fundamentally means no more money for defence”.
“Wallace and Sunak have been daggers drawn for months over defence spending.
“So, put in the man who will not only obey but will then spin it all on the Airways whilst Rishi hides in No10 as usual.”
Another senior Tory MP said there is a “general feeling that it’s a very strange appointment”.
“He’s got no military background that anyone is aware of. He has all the hallmarks of his having been put there because he’s a supporter of Rishi Sunak.
“At a time when we’ve actually got a war in Ukraine, and we’re obviously heavily involved – at least on the periphery – it might have been rather better to have someone with experience of defence.”
Top Tory peer Lord Ashcroft forebodingly warned: “Defence of the nation at this time is vital. I do hope that Rishi Sunak‘s judgment in appointing Grant Shapps as Defence Secretary is not based on personal loyalty…”
Speaking on GB News earlier this morning, a diplomatic Mark Francois suggested that Armed Forces Minister James Heappey would have been better suited to the job.
Mr Francois said it was a “good question” when asked what Mr Shapps knows about defence having never held a ministerial portfolio “anywhere near it”.
He added: “Ben Wallace is going to be an incredibly tough act to follow and I think, to put it mildly, because it’s such a complex department, this is going to be a very steep learning curve for Grant Shapps”.
“He’s got a number of really tough issues to deal with… he’s got a very full in-tray.
“The challenge is, what experience of defence has he got to bring to that post?”
He added that while it’s for the PM to pick Cabinet appointments, many people in the MoD wanted James Heappey to get the job.
“Grant Shapps is a bright bloke, but he’s going to have to come up to speed very very quickly.”
A Tory insider told GB News: “He has absolutely no experience in the role, and given there is now a war underway right on the border with NATO it would be beyond bonkers to give it to him”.
“I’m not sure he would even know the difference between a tank and a fighter jet!”
The LibDems also piled on the criticism, accusing Mr Shapps of being a “yes-man”.
“The Conservative Government merry-go-round has to stop. They have taken the armed forces for granted for too long, and we are all left less safe as a result.”
