The end of Theresa May

The vultures of the British Conservative Party rallied and the individual who seemed to prosper in check, to gain scale in defeat, finally yielded. British Prime Minister Theresa May will give way to a change of leadership on June 7th. Never known for his great gestures of emotion, the Maybot finally gave way to this one.

It had started rather optimistically in 2016. May preside over a Britain leaving the European Union in good shape. She even dared to suggest that an internal reform program could be implemented. Neither occurred, and clues were already evident with the optimistic trio briskly overseeing the Brexit process: David Davis, Brexit secretary fabulously ill-equipped, Liam Fox taking the reins as secretary of the Brexit international trade and Boris Johnson the Foreign Office. Nevertheless, it was May who seemed to insist that everything be possible: the United Kingdom could always come out of the customs union and the single market, repudiate freedom of movement and evade the jurisdiction of the Court. European. Independent trade agreements with non-EU countries would be concluded, but similar trade agreements could still be concluded in one form or another with the EU. And there would be no problem with the Irish border.

The problems, however, appeared early. May's leadership style is problematic. His ministerial reshuffles (read bloodletting) have done much to create animosity. Some eight ministers were fired in the first round, all but one less than 50 years old at the time. They were, like Stephen Bush the dish"In the middle of their political career, a dangerous moment to leave them nothing to lose."

His decision to go to the polls in 2017 to crush the opposition was also an act on the part of a crazy leader. In a position of strength to teach her party the harsh truths of Brexit instead of covering her ears, she left Labor's Jeremy Corbyn with enough leeway to revive his party while imposing a considerable handicap. . EU negotiators knew that they were negotiating with a significantly weakened leader.

Then comes the cold showers, triggered by alarm bells such as Brexit Secretary of the Shadow's suggestion, Keir Starmer, in 2017, that a transition phase should come into effect after the UK's withdrawal from the United States. the EU by the UK. Like Starmer observed at the time"The constructive ambiguity – David Davis' description of the government's approach – can not take you so far."

May duly suffered three dreadful defeats in Parliament, all related to the non-compliance with the withdrawal agreement, and pushed back the daggers of the usurpation within his own party. She had also had to convince the EU that two extensions of Brexit were justified. Jeremy Corbyn, the leader of the Labor Party, came to the bargaining table at the last opportunity. To a large extent, this was encouraged by the third failure of the withdrawal agreement on March 29th.

May 21, the Prime Minister sketch the latest incarnation of a plan that has never gone beyond the support stage of life. He looked like a captain heading to the iceberg of inevitability. She remained determined to "organize Brexit and help our country to go beyond the referendum division and look to a better future". It has been embellished with the sweet idea of ​​forging this "country that works for everyone," all with "the chance to get in life and go as far as their talent and their work can carry them. "

She hoped for alternative solutions to Irish support. The new Brexit agreement "will stipulate in law that the House of Commons will approve the UK's goals for negotiations on our future relations with the EU and that it will approve the treaties governing these relations before their signature by the government ". The bill on rights would be introduced to guarantee British citizens protection equivalent to that of British workers, or better. The level of environmental protection would not be changed, a new environmental protection office should ensure control. But May's concessions on the customs union and the proposal for a second referendum as part of the package, both largely aimed at appeasing the Labor Party, were too much for his cabinet. His resignation was badured.

the resignation speech was a patchwork attempt to save a difficult legacy. It was "just to persevere, even when the chances of success seemed high." But it would be his successor to seek a solution that honors the result of the referendum. To succeed, he will have to find a consensus in Parliament when I have not done so. "

She had led a "decent, moderate and patriotic conservative government on the common ground of British politics." She spoke of a "union of people", united without distinction of background, skin color "or those we love". Beyond a pure and exclusive goal focused on Brexit, she has sought to highlight national achievements such as information on wages and the audit of racial disparities. This has led to conservative outlets like The Spectator wonder if such initiatives had "invented victimization where it did not exist".

There will be as much post-mortem on the May mandate as there are proposals on Brexit. Steve Richards, writing for The New European, felt that May never had a chance. It was a period of uncertainty made permanent. With the resignation of each secretary of the Brexit, at each defeat of the exit plan by the Parliament, "nothing much has happened, there is only one feeling of accumulated misfortune". It was a ready-made result.

The list of contenders seeking to replace May is a list of agents less a guarantor of stability than guaranteed chaos overshadowed by huge question marks. In addition, anyone wishing to volunteer for a replacement is likely to undergo treatment similar to that given in May.

The current team of contenders is composed of varied and unequal talents. Secretary of the Environment, Michael Gove, and former Secretary of Brexit, Dominic Raab, were quite late. They joined Matt Hanbad, Jeremy Hunt, Boris Johnson, Esther McVey, Andrea Leadsom and Rory Stewart. Political observers and the faithful will remain vigilant: Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt campaigned in the 2016 referendum to stay in the UK; in the same way, Hanbad, supposedly adept at technology.

With an individual like Boris Johnson, you are sure to experience a period of chaos. Unable to master a dissertation, his temperament is totally hostile to stable ministerial appointments. He tries to compensate for this with a public school joke that treats some character flaws as eccentric gifts. Although he is appreciated by conservative supporters, his fellow parliamentarians are not so sure. The "Bold" as a British formula will only take you so far; the tough negotiators of the EU will testify.

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