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Despite a tumultuous start to their first 100 days in office, the Labour Party has been able to put its own stamp on government since the General Election in July – and this week, they gave the boot to several trade advisors appointed by former Conservative ministers.
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Three significant departures from the Board of Trade have been confirmed over the weekend. Arguably the most recognisable name in there is Tony Abbott. The former Australian Prime Minister, who is a staunch climate change denier, was given the role by Liz Truss back in 2020.
In fact, the pair have been addressing audiences in Sydney within the last 24 hours, bemoaning the so-called ‘mind-virus’ of Net Zero policies. His position is greatly at odds with the new administration, however, so his dismissal doesn’t come as much of a surprise.
Abbott is also a firm and unapologetic right-winger. He has expressed anti-abortion views and even campaigned against the legalisation of gay marriage in his native Australia within the last decade. This, however, was a battle he would go on to lose.
There’s also Daniel Hannan who finds himself turfed-out of his position. As one of the top cheerleaders for Brexit, Lord Hannan has stuck to his guns in the eight years that followed – and he has also thrown his support behind Robert Jenrick in the ongoing Tory leadership race.
Finally, David Meller was the third appointee let go from the role. The Tory donor, who secured multi-million pound PPE contracts with Boris Johnson’s government during the pandemic, was closely aligned with Michael Gove, financially supporting several of his political campaigns.
As reported by the climate-conscious publishers at DeSmog, the government states that ‘the future direction of the Board of Trade is currently being considered’, and it is understood that new advisors ‘will be appointed soon’.
