Published 23:52 IST, July 24th 2019
Indian-origin Priti Patel appointed UK's Secretary of State by new PM Boris Johnson
Indian-origin Priti Patel was appointed as UK's Secretary of State by the new Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
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Indian-origin Priti Patel was appointed as UK's Secretary of State by the new Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
She will replace Sajid Javed, who will not handle the profile of a Chancellor in the Cabinet.
Patel was forced to resign from UK's previous PM Theresa May's government after it was disclosed that she conducted secret meeting with the Israeli government two years ago.
According to reports, supporters of Johnson are confident that the new Prime Minister of UK will appoint a 'record number' of politicians belonging to ethnic minorities in the UK Cabinet.
Boris Johnson officially became Britain's new Prime Minister on Wednesday and promised to leave the European Union on October 31 "no ifs, no buts" under a "new deal" with the 28-member economic bloc.
The 55-year-old former foreign secretary and London Mayor laid out his vision as Prime Minister in his first speech on the steps of Downing Street after a meeting with Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace, during which the 93-year-old monarch formally invited him to form a government after accepting Theresa May's resignation a little earlier.
"We will restore trust in our democracy and we are going to fulfil the repeated promises of Parliament to the people and come out of the EU on October 31, no ifs or buts," Johnson said, adding that while he does have 99 days to that deadline, the country has had enough of waiting and the time to act on Brexit is right away.
Johnson, who has in the past described himself as a son-in-law of India by virtue of his now estranged wife Marina Wheeler's Indian mother - Dip Kaur, has stressed that the UK's relationship with India must run deeper than just trade.
In reference to India-UK relations, Johnson is on the record saying he wants to pursue a new trade deal and is expected to build on his self-confessed "personal relationship" with Prime Minister Narendra Modi to deliver a "truly special" bilateral relationship.
"Boris is committed to securing a new and improved trading relationship with our friends in India and ensuring that the values we share the rule of law, democracy and dynamic entrepreneurial spirit should be at the heart of one of our most important partners on the global stage," said Priti Patel, one of the senior-most Indian-origin Tory MPs who is expected to be a part of the new premier's ministerial team as a key member of the Back Boris campaign.
(With PTI inputs)
23:43 IST, July 24th 2019