Theresa May, the runaway favourite to be Britain’s next Prime Minister, may not have “big ideas” or “convictions” or “feelings”.
But if there is one thing Theresa May wants you to know about Theresa May, it’s that she gets. stuff. done.
Except often, she actually doesn’t. Here are some notable blunders by our Home Secretary – from colossal to just quite big.
Immigration targets
Pretty much everyone accepted that the Government’s oft-repeated “tens of thousands” pledge on immigration is a nonsense while EU free movement persists.
But that doesn’t erase the fact that May presided over a system she knew had zero hope of success – and indeed pushed the delusion again and again.
Child abuse appointment scandal (x2)
A flat-out embarrassing – and pretty avoidable – gaffe came in 2014 when May was incapable of finding somebody impartial to chair the government’s child sex abuse inquiry – twice.
First Baroness Butler-Sloss stepped down after just six days – because many pointed out that she is the sister of a former attorney general who would almost certainly be a subject of the inquiry.
The her replacement, Fiona Woolf, lasted less than two months on the grounds she was neighbors with Leon Brittan – another likely subject of the probe. Issues with both were glaringly obvious, but missed by May.
“Go Home” vans
Can’t enact your manifesto pledge with actual border control? Intimidate people instead!
One of the Home Office’s lowest ebbs was a May-endorsed plan to send roving vans encouraging illegal immigrants to “go home or face arrest” – which sparked widespread revulsion and got hardly anyone to actually leave.
Theresa May – competent?
Bought vans carrying illegal immigrants go home message – then scrapped themhttps://t.co/TYmcDrKFpm
— chris g (@chrisg0000) July 3, 2016
May never publicly apologised for the fiasco – but quietly backed down decided to discontinue the scheme.
Deportation, deportation, deportation
Turns out that even when May tries to remove people from Britain with more than a strongly-worded van, it is quite the struggle.
It took years and millions of pounds to eject Abu Qatada, while other would-be targets have moved precisely nowhere, including the daughter-in-law of hate preacher Abu Hamza, despite her being a convicted criminal.
In bed with the Saudis
May’s standing took a bashing earlier this year over cosy arrangements with the unpleasant regime in Saudi Arabia – ironically at the hands of now-vanquished rival Michael Gove.
Government keeps Theresa May's 'murky' deal with Saudi Arabia a secret https://t.co/QenYVqMb0v pic.twitter.com/s0oIXvWhB7
— Daily Express (@Daily_Express) December 23, 2015
Gove, newly empowered as Justice Secretary, forced a British exit from a £6 million contract whereby the UK government was to help run Saudi prisons.
May had lobbied for the contract, according to The Times, and lost standing within the cabinet when her attempts fell through.
Bonus! Charity scandal just as you’re standing for PM
With excellent timing, Theresa May’s upswing of fortunes in the Conservative leadership race coincided with the unveiling of a Kids Company-style charity scandal with links straight to her.
This is an important read. Broken Rainbow was a vital service, but seemingly run as a personal piggy bank… https://t.co/NwCLIRrAln
— Ryan John Butcher (@ryanjohnbutcher) July 5, 2016
Broken Rainbows, a charity for LGBT victims of domestic abuse, gets more than half its cash from May’s Home Office.
It then, according to a length exposé by BuzzFeed News, chucked a goodly chunk of it directly on lavish travel expenses, flowers and other nonsense for its preening CEO – raising questions about the judgment of May and those around her.
