Zac Goldsmith in row with PM as he insists he really did quit over environment, and not over Boris support
30 June 2023, 13:41 | Updated: 30 June 2023, 13:57
Former environment minister Zac Goldsmith has refuted a claim by Rishi Sunak that he quit because of support for Boris Johnson, saying instead that he stepped down because of the Prime Minister's "lethargy" on green issues.
Lord Goldsmith, a Boris Johnson ally, initially resigned from his post on Friday morning, citing Rishi Sunak's show of "apathy towards the environment".
Rishi Sunak said later on Friday that Lord Goldsmith quit because he had undermined the Privileges Committee, which ruled that Mr Johnson had deliberately misled MPs over the lockdown-busting parties in Downing Street.
Mr Sunak said that the former environment minister's comments, and refusal to apologise" were "incompatible" with remaining in government.
But Lord Goldsmith hit back again on Friday afternoon, telling Global's News Agents podcast that he was happy to apologise - and restating that Mr Sunak's approach to the environment was the real reason for his resignation.
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Lord Goldsmith said: "The PM is wrong. I am happy to apologise for publicly sharing my views on the Privilege Committee. I firmly believe our Parliamentary democracy can only be strengthened by robust scrutiny and Parliamentarians should of course be free to be critical of its reports and proceedings.
"But as a Minister I shouldn’t have commented publicly. Number 10 asked me to acknowledge that and made clear that there was no question of my being ‘sacked’ if I did so. I was - and am - happy to do so.
"My decision to step down has been a long time coming. As I explained in my letter to the PM, I have tried hard in recent months to protect and build upon a strong UK record of international environmental leadership. That job has become significantly harder on his watch and I am saddened by the damage being done to our reputation globally as a result.
"When I compare what I and my amazing team in government were able to do before the current PM took office with the lethargy of today, I can no longer justify being in government. I sincerely hope he reflects on the substance of my letter and of similar views expressed by so many others."
It comes a day after Lord Goldsmith was accused of undermining the Privileges Committees investigation into Mr Johnson, which ruled the former prime minister deliberately misled Parliament over Partygate.
But at the centre of Lord Goldsith's resignation letter was Sunak's apparent "apathy" over climate change.
In his letter, Lord Goldsmith cited the government's decision to ditch an animal welfare bill, as well as the abandonment of the pledge to spend £11.6bn of UK aid on climate and environment.
In doing so, he personally criticised Mr Sunak for being "simply uninterested".
"The problem is not that the government is hostile to the environment, it is that you, our prime minister, are simply uninterested," he wrote.
"That signal, or lack of it, has trickled down through Whitehall and caused a kind of paralysis."
Starting his two-page resignation letter, Lord Goldsmith wrote: "The past four years have been an exhilarating experience for me, and I will forever be grateful that I was put in a position where I could do more for the environment than I thought possible in a lifetime.
"I'm proud that in recent years the UK has played a critical, indeed defining role - leading powerful coalitions of ambition and securing world-changing commitments over a very wide range of environmental issues."
"I will never understand how, with all the knowledge we now have about our fundamental reliance on the natural world and the speed with which we are destroying it, anyone can be uninterested," he went on.
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He concluded the letter: "It has been a privilege to be able to work with so many talented people in government, in particular my Private Office, and to have been able to make a difference to a cause I have been committed to for as long as I remember.
"But this government's apathy in the face of the greatest challenge we have faced makes continuing in my current role untenable.
"With great reluctance I am therefore stepping down as a Minister in order to focus my energy where it can be more useful."
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Lord Goldsmith, alongside Nadine Dorries, Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg and Priti Patel, were heavily criticised for 'undermining procedures of the House of Commons" by criticising its inquiry into Mr Johnson.
Members of the committee faced attacks from those close to Boris Johnson in a bid to "prevent them" from doing their duty”, the report that found Johnson misled parliament said on Thursday.
"Those Members did not choose to engage through any proper process such as the submission of letters or evidence to our inquiry, but by attacking the members of the committee, in order to influence their judgment," the new report said.
