Downing St defends Suella Braverman over speeding ticket charges

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Downing Street has defended UK Home Secretary Suella Braverman following reports over the weekend that she was asking civil servants to help her avoid speeding points on her driving licence.

Braverman was caught speeding by police last summer, it was first reported since Sunday Times newspaper. The minister, who was Attorney General at the time, was reportedly given a number of options, including attending a speeding course alongside other members of the public or having a three-point penalty on his licence.

The newspaper revealed it Brave man she enlisted the help of civil servants and her political aide to organize a private speeding awareness course — not offered to other drivers — but later accepted points on her license when that request was denied.

A spokesman for the Home Secretary did not deny the allegations, but said: ‘Mrs Braverman accepts that she accelerated last summer and regrets having done so. She got the three points and paid the fine last year.

Challenged whether Sir Laurie Magnus, the independent adviser for ministerial interests, would investigate the matter and whether he had full confidence in his Home Secretary, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said Braverman had “expressed regret” over the incident.

“I don’t know all the details of what happened, nor have I spoken to the interior minister,” Sunak said during a news briefing at the G7 conference in Hiroshima. “I think you can see firsthand what I’ve done over the last day or so, but I understand that he expressed regret for speeding, accepted the fine, and paid the fine.”

Downing Street later stressed that the Prime Minister “obviously” had faith in his Home Secretary.

These reports come later Brave man he was accused last week of launching a thinly veiled leadership bid, in a 4,000-word speech that reiterated the importance of curtailing “legal migration” and Channel crossings.

His department is prepared for new data on net migration from the Office for National Statistics that analysts predict could reach 700,000 from just over 500,000 in the year to June 2022.

On Sunday, Environment Secretary Thérèse Coffey denied that Braverman’s actions showed ministers believed they were above the rules.

“As the prime minister said this morning, he got points, he had the chance to take a speed course, he didn’t, he regrets the speeding, and that’s all the information I have,” he told the BBC. Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg.

“I don’t think government ministers think they are above the rules. . . pretty much everyone has the option to pay a fine, get points or take a course,” she said.

Opposition parties have now urged Sunak to launch a public inquiry to investigate whether the government minister broke the ministerial code and clarify what the prime minister knew and when.

“I think Rishi Sunak should start an investigation into this,” shadow health minister Liz Kendall told Sky News Sophie Ridge on Sunday. “You should ask the independent counsel whether he has breached ministerial code standards here.”

Liberal Democrat home affairs spokesman Alistair Carmichael said: ‘Over and over again Sunak has put Conservative politicians in his cabinet who think they are above the rules and, each time, they have taken the British people for fools. The Interior Minister must undergo an urgent investigation. Every second he doesn’t is another blow to the integrity of this already depraved prime minister.”

The Cabinet Office said: “It would be inappropriate to comment on the existence or content of advice between government departments.”