8 2GM Wednesday April 8 2020 | the times
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Dominic Raab struggled to say yester-
day whether he had the authority to
implement government policy changes
as the coronavirus crisis unfolds.
The foreign secretary insisted that
the cabinet was united behind deliver-
ing Mr Johnson’s instructions with
“calm determination”, saying: “We can
reassure the public that his team will
not blink or flinch in the task ahead.”
Senior figures in No 10 accept that
the prime minister will need a period of
recuperation after recovery; one week
for every day spent in intensive care is
the rule of thumb. Mr Raab will have to
oversee a series of decisions without the
prime minister’s involvement and
without his authority.
Asked who would make a decision if
there was a disagreement among senior
ministers, Mr Raab said: “Decision-
making is made by collective cabinet
responsibility.”
A cabinet minister insisted that Mr
Raab had not been nominated as
“acting PM” but asked to deputise
“where necessary”. “That means roles
reside with the relevant cabinet minis-
ters,” they said. Responsibility for
security rests with Priti Patel, for exam-
ple, not with Mr Raab, they said.
The foreign secretary acknowledged
the limits of his power. “I’ve been given
a clear steer from the PM — very clear
instructions in terms of dealing with
coronavirus, and he’s asked me to
deputise for him for as long as is
necessary, but the normal cabinet
collective responsibility and principles
that inform that will apply.”
Downing Street figures were encour-
aged by ministers’ responses to Mr
Raab when he updated the full cabinet
in a conference call yesterday. “The
message was very much, ‘we know
what the mission is, now it’s up to each
of us to deliver our part’, ” a source said.
One cabinet minister said yesterday
that there was a wish to pull together.
“While the prime minister is under the
cosh we have got to work together,”
they said. “Collective responsibility has
Raab struggles
to say who is in
charge among
edgy ministers
never been more important.” A senior
Conservative said they had expected
Michael Gove and Mr Raab to “tussle”
for authority, before Mr Gove self-
isolated because a family member had
symptoms. “With Michael in isolation
it’s pretty clear that it’s going to be Dom
and Matt [Hancock] who are taking the
lead,” they said.
Mr Raab’s relationship with the
leaders of devolved administrations
will be tested soon, when social distanc-
ing measures are reviewed. Mark
Drakesford, first minister of Wales, is
demanding to take part in the Cobra
meeting on that decision.
Decisions over whether to relax or
tighten the rules will be informed by an
expert assessment of the outbreak’s
progress, but are ultimately political.
Balances will have to be struck between
individual and collective wellbeing and
between the requirements to contain a
health emergency and the health and
wealth of generations to come.
Companies are pushing the Treasury
for a steer on whether the job retention
scheme will be extended beyond the
initial three-month period. Without it,
some may issue redundancy notices to
coincide with the end of the period for
which the government has committed
to meet the costs of 80 per cent of
salaries. With the typical notice period
of 45 days the UK could experience a
new wave of job losses in early May un-
less more support is given.
Aside from the big calls, there will be
smaller decisions that Mr Raab must
take as the prime minister’s deputy.
Many, such as confirming appoint-
ments and dealing with foreign delega-
tions, are genuinely routine. “A deci-
sion that needs to wait for [the PM’s]
authority is hard to define in advance
but you know when you see it,” a former
cabinet minister said.
“Commentators will no doubt want
to push the threshold of what is theoret-
ically possible but in serious times seri-
ous people will pull together,” said
Damian Green, who was Theresa May’s
de facto deputy in 2017.
Leading article, page 27Francis Elliott, Steven Swinford
As in many parts of public life the fact
that Britain does not have a written
constitution means that what happens
if a prime minister becomes incapaci-
tated is a grey area. But there are plans
and protocols.
It is widely accepted that prime min-
isters can appoint a senior minister to
make decisions on their behalf if, for
any reason, they cannot fulfil that func-
tion for a short period.
When Anthony Eden became ill after
the Suez crisis he appointed Rab Butler
to stand in for him while he controver-
sially convalesced in Jamaica.
When Tony Blair needed an opera-
tion to correct a heart condition, John
Prescott, the deputy prime minister,
notionally stood in for him.
Dominic Raab, as first secretary of
Commons
gets ready
to go virtual
Esther Webber Red Box Reporter
Plans and protocols are some help in a grey area
state, holds this position. He is deputis-
ing for Mr Johnson and can make deci-
sions the prime minister would make.
He is chairman of the government’s
daily C-19 morning meeting and the
four cabinet sub-committees on
healthcare, the public sector, the eco-
nomy and business and the inter-
national response and will continue to
report into that meeting.
Michael Gove, the Cabinet Office
minister, declined to comment yester-
day on who was in charge of national
security but there are established pro-
tocols to ensure a line of command.
In any government four ministers are
trained to deal with a 9/11-style attack
on Britain and if the prime minister
cannot be reached the decision passes
to the next delegated minister. Similar-
ly, on wider national security questions
Mr Raab will deputise as chairman ofthe national security council and would
lead in that area.
Experts say that there are limits to
the foreign secretary’s power in a way
that would not apply to the prime min-
ister. If the cabinet were to step in and
say they wanted another minister to act
as prime minister rather than Mr Raab
they could do so. Only the prime minis-
ter could countermand this but if he
was unable to do so the cabinet would
be free to insist on the alternative.
So what would happen if a prime
minister unexpectedly died in office?
The closest Britain has come to this sit-
uation was in 1908 when Henry Camp-
bell-Bannerman died in Downing
Street. But he was ill and had resigned
19 days earlier.
If Mr Johnson were to die in office Mr
Raab would not automatically succeed
him. Instead it would be up to the cabi-net to decide who should go to Bucking-
ham Palace and ask permission from
the Queen to form a new government.
This would have to be done very
quickly because, unlike America, there
is no order of succession. The cabinet
would almost certainly nominate an in-
terim successor who would take the
role on a temporary basis before a Con-
servative party leadership contest.
Politics would play its part and there
may be pressure to choose someone
who would promise not to run them-
selves to avoid an unfair advantage.
But nothing is written down. The
only rule is that whoever takes the job
must command the confidence of the
House of Commons. As Brexit, as well
as this situation shows, there can be dis-
advantages to not having a clear set of
rules to dictate what should happen in
highly unusual circumstances.Oliver Wright Policy Editor
The House of Commons is preparing to
meet virtually when it reconvenes this
month.
The parliamentary authorities are
laying the groundwork to use video-
conferencing for question sessions and
the scrutiny of legislation, under plans
first reported in The Times last month.
Virtual meetings have already been
introduced for select committees inter-
rogating the government’s response to
the coronavirus but the change would
be a first for the chamber. Jacob Rees-
Mogg, the Commons leader, said: “TheNews Coronavirus
Dominic Raab is deputising for Boris Johnson. He is married to a Brazilian marketing executive, Erika, and has said that his
involvement with sport, including as a boxing blue at Oxford, helped him after the death of his father, Peter, when he was 12