Housing minister Stuart Andrew resigns, citing ‘personal integrity’
Housing minister Stuart Andrew has become the latest senior figure to quit his role in government as the crisis surrounding Boris Johnson deepens.
Housing minister Stuart Andrew has resigned
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Mr Andrew, who has only been in the role for five months, became the ninth minister to resign since yesterday, as Mr Johnson faces a serious threat to his leadership. A string of parliamentary private secretaries also quit, while a growing number of Conservative MPs said they had lost confidence in the prime minister.
Yesterday saw chancellor Rishi Sunak and health secretary Sajid Javid tender their resignations amid the controversy around Mr Johnson’s decision to appoint Chris Pincher to the role of deputy chief whip earlier this year.
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Mr Pincher was housing minister before Mr Andrew took the job in February this year.
The revolving door of housing ministers has seen 11 different MPs take the role in the past 12 years.
In his resignation letter, published on Twitter, Mr Andrew apologised to the housing sector for having to “get to know another housing minister”.
He said: “Loyalty and unity are traits that I have always endeavoured to provide for our great party. However I fear that I have let these override my judgment recently.
“There comes a time when you have to look at your own personal integrity and that time is now. Therefore, given recent events I have no other choice than to resign.”
He added: “Our party, particularly our members, and more importantly our great country, deserve better. Having a marginal seat I have seen the huge sacrifice our members make in volunteering considerable hours to campaign on our behalf and I cannot, in all good conscience, tolerate them having to defend the indefensible.”
Born in Wales, Mr Andrew has served as MP for Pudsey in West Yorkshire since 2010. Prior to becoming housing minister he was deputy chief whip, the role then taken up by Mr Pincher before he resigned last week.
Since news of Mr Andrew’s resignation, six more ministers have also resigned - including two others in the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities. This includes Neil O’Brien, levelling up minister, and Kemi Badenoch, local government, faith and communities minister. Lee Rowley, a junior business minister whose remit includes construction, is also among those to have quit.
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