New UK PM Rishi Sunak reshuffles his Cabinet

London: New UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak reshuffled his Cabinet, retaining Jeremy Hunt as Chancellor, and Ben Wallace as Defence Secretary while appointing Dominic Raab as Deputy Prime Minister and Suella Braverman as Home Secretary.

Conservative Party tweeted that Jeremy Hunt was re-appointed as UK's Chancellor of the Exchequer. Hunt was appointed chancellor by former prime minister Liz Truss 11 days ago, after turmoil in the financial markets following the mini-budget and its platform of unfunded tax cuts. Dominic Raab has been appointed as Deputy Prime Minister and Justice Secretary.

Ben Wallace has been re-appointed as Defence Secretary by Sunak. Wallace was appointed Defence Secretary in July 2019 and retained his post in Liz Truss' government.

Suella Braverman has been re-appointed as Home Secretary, less than a week after she resigned from the same role in Truss' cabinet. Braverman is back as the person responsible for overseeing UK borders, policing and counter-terrorism.

Penny Mordaunt has



been re-appointed as leader of the House of Commons. She will also assume the role of Lord President of the Council again, as the presiding officer of the Privy Council. Gillian Keegan has been appointed secretary of state for education.

Indian-origin British minister Alok Sharma lost his Cabinet position in Prime Minister Sunak's reshuffle. Jacob Rees-Mogg, one of Boris Johnson's most loyal supporters, has resigned as Business Secretary while Brandon Lewis has stepped down as Justice Secretary. James Cleverly has been re-appointed as Foreign Secretary. Cleverly was appointed Foreign Secretary by Liz Truss in September. Simon Hart has been appointed as the new chief whip in Rishi Sunak's cabinet, replacing Wendy Morton.

Nadhim Zahawi will remain in Cabinet, despite initially backing Boris Johnson in the leadership race. Oliver Dowden has been appointed Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, Downing Street has confirmed. Sunak officially became UK Prime Minister after meeting King Charles III at Buckingham Palace.