Suella Braverman leaves post as British home secretary

Oct. 19 (UPI) -- Less than two months on the job as Britain's home secretary, Suella Braverman quit Wednesday and gave new Prime Minister Liz Truss a thumb's-down on the way out.

Braverman said she left after acknowledging she used her personal email to send an official document to a parliamentary colleague but saved most of her resignation letter for a stinging rebuke of Truss.

It marks the second high-profile departure in Truss' young term as prime minister. Last week, Truss asked for the resignation of Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng after his massive tax cut proposal, which the prime minister had embraced, roiled markets and led to the devaluation of the British pound.

Under new Chancellor Jeremy Hunt, Truss has abandoned much of that plan, even though it was one of her campaign promises -- as Braverman pointed out in her resignation.

"I have concerns about the direction of this government," Braverman said in her resignation letter. "Not only have we broken key pledges that were promised to our voters, but I have had serious concerns about this government's commitment to honoring manifesto commitments, such as reducing overall migration numbers and stopping illegal migration, particularly the dangerous small-boats crossings.

Braverman becomes the shortest-serving home secretary since World War II, having served in the job 43 days. She argued that Truss has not taken accountability for her government's missteps.

"The business of government relies on up people accepting responsibility for their mistakes," Braverman wrote. "Pretending we haven't made mistakes, carrying on as if everyone can't see that we have made them, and hoping that things will magically come right is not serious politics."

Grant Shapps, who supported Truss' opponent Rishi Sunak for prime minister, is expected to replace Braverman.

The Labor Party's shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper ripped Truss and the government, saying it is "falling apart at the seams" and "utter chaos."

"But the problems go beyond one home secretary," Cooper said in comments posted on Twitter. "If they can't even manage the basics, they need to get out of the way and hand over to people who can. We need a change of government not just a change in home secretary."