Calls For Foreign Secretary's Resignation Grow Amid Afghan Withdrawal

Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs Dominic Raab is facing growing opposition calls for him to resign, or for Prime Minister Boris Johnson to relieve him of his office. Shadow Foreign Secretary Lisa Nandy released a statement this morning concluding: "How can Boris Johnson allow the Foreign Secretary to continue in his role after yet another catastrophic failure of judgement?...If Dominic Raab doesn't have the decency to resign, the Prime Minister must show a shred of leadership and sack him"

• The calls for Raab's removal come after a Daily Mail story alleging that Raab refused to act on Foreign Office advice to call the foreign minister of Afghanistan over the weekend to ensure the safe evacuation of British nationals and other allies as Raab was on holiday in Crete.
• Esther Webber at Politico tweets "Asking around it doesn't sound like Raab's holiday has become a postbag headache for Conservative MPs yet - only day one after the Mail front page though"
• The scale of the political and media backlash against the gov't for the lack of preparation for the Taliban sweep of Afghanistan may force the gov't removing a minister from office, with a Cabinet reshuffle rumoured for late this year or early 2022.
• However, over the course of Johnson's tenure as PM a number of ministers, senior and junior, have managed to hold onto their positions despite widespread expectations of their removal or resignation. As such, if Raab can emerge from this crisis still in office in several months time, he may be able to hold onto his position.