When Dominic Raab took up the post of Brexit Secretary in the wake of David Davis’s resignation over Chequers, a number of Tory MPs were surprised by his decision (see Geoffrey Cox for reasons to take Cabinet jobs). Some Brexiteers thought that Raab ought to have proved his Leave credentials and said no given the terms of Theresa May’s soft Brexit blueprint. Others couldn’t work out why the job appealed to an ambitious rising star given that it was by all accounts a hospital pass.
Today’s Brexit statement in the Commons went some way to providing evidence for the latter point. With Theresa May lukewarm on the idea of giving a statement to the Commons on the disastrous Salzburg summit and the state of the negotiations since, Raab was sent out instead. The Brexiteer Cabinet minister put in a valiant effort as he took to the despatch box to insist that the government remained confident that a deal was in sight.
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