Things hot inside and outside No. 10

Press, 26 July 1989, Page 10

Things hot inside and outside No. 10

NZPA-Reuter London The British Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher, has executed the most dramatic Cabinet shake-up of her 10-year rule while the country swelters in 30deg. plus heat.

She has eased out Sir Geoffrey Howe as Foreign Secretary and brought in rising Conservative stars to boost the party’s flagging popularity. Mrs Thatcher sent shock waves through British politics by prising Sir Geoffrey from the Foreign Office yesterday and replacing him with the relatively unknown John Major, previously number two to the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Nigel Lawson. All this has been presented to the British public while it struggles to

cope with a dramatic change in the weather, which has left many areas short of water. Fighting a mounting challenge from the resurgent Labour Party, Mrs Thatcher also sacked the Transport Secretary, Paul Channon, and the Social Services Secretary, John Moore and rang the changes at the key ministries of Education, Trade, Defence and Environment. But the big surprise was the dramatic rise of Mr Major, catapulted into one of the highest offices; in a-

move which political commentators said marked him out as Mrs Thatcher’s designated successor. “It was wholly unexpected,” Mr Major, the son of a circus trapeze artist, told a television interviewer. “She invited me to sit down and offered me the job and I was delighted to accept.” He added: “There are tremendous opportunities to be taken in terms of East-West relationships where the field is changing very rapidly ... and ;• certainly in terms' of

Europe. I would like to see us take a lead in Europe.”

Another rising star, the Overseas Development Minister, Christopher Patten, aged 44, was put in charge of Environment amid rising voter concern in Britain on green issues. Kenneth Baker, rated one of the Conservatives’ ablest communicators, was made party chairman, effectively charging him with steering Mrs Thatcher to a fourth successive victory in elections due by 1992.