Behind the Curtain: Lord Graham Brady and the Delicate Art of Ending a Prime Minister’s Career

Lord Graham Brady shares his experience of informing a Conservative leader that their tenure is over.

As the chairman of the 1922 Committee, the organization responsible for overseeing the party's leadership elections, Lord Brady had the responsibility of notifying leaders when their period in charge had concluded.

Political correspondent @fayebrownSky

Wednesday, October 16, 2024, 8:

Sir Graham Brady has become quite famous in political circles for his role in ending the careers of prime ministers.

The former chairman of the Conservative Party's 1922 Committee has shared with Sky News that it is often a difficult duty to tell a Tory leader that their tenure should end.

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Throughout his 14-year tenure leading a prominent group of backbench MPs, he was called upon multiple times to navigate challenges during a tumultuous period marked by the tenure of five prime ministers, the Brexit saga, the COVID pandemic, and the conflict in Ukraine.

He revealed to the Politics Hub with Sophy Ridge that Theresa May was the most challenging.

She assumed the role of prime minister in 2016 following David Cameron's resignation due to the outcome of the EU referendum, and her tenure ended three years later due to resistance to her proposed Brexit agreement.

He explained that the task was always going to be challenging, but it became completely unmanageable after her decision to call an unexpected general election in 2017 didn't pan out, as it resulted in losing the majority in the House of Commons.

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"It was clear that Theresa May was unable to achieve the main goal of her administration.

"It was clear to almost everyone she worked with that she would need to leave."

Despite surviving a previous no-confidence vote, the decision ultimately rested with the ex-Home Secretary to either voluntarily step down or risk the 1922 Committee amending their regulations to permit a second vote by her fellow party members, potentially leading to her expulsion.

Lord Brady, who resigned from his position as a Member of Parliament before the July election, stated, "I engaged in several conversations with her, which ultimately culminated in her realization that she needed to set a departure date, and that was incredibly difficult for her."

He noted that it was "clearly a tough moment" for Mrs. May, who tearfully stepped down in May 2019, emphasizing that "it brought me no joy to do so."

"He explained that his aim was to ensure her exit was less violent and traumatic than it could have been."

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Even though she continued to show no remorse and attributed her failures to conspiracies like the "deep state," she realized her career was over when Lord Brady showed up, according to his statement.

"When I finally went to tell her that I believed it was over, she concurred."

"That turned into a quite straightforward discussion."

He stated: "If she hadn't stepped down that day, I believe there would have been a vote of no confidence, and it's highly likely she would have been defeated.

"Indeed, she arrived at the same realization that I and others did: it was simply impossible to restore everything to working order and get it back on track."

Regarding Boris Johnson, who underwent a vote of confidence due to the partygate scandal, Lord Brady stated that those who set the rules should abide by them.

"He pointed out the irony that Boris, who was in charge of implementing these constantly evolving and complex COVID regulations, ultimately got caught up in them himself," he said.

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