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Coffee House Shots

What the Aukus pact says about Britain’s foreign policy

Coffee House Shots

The Spectator

News, Politics, Government, Daily News

4.42.1K Ratings

🗓️ 16 September 2021

⏱️ 12 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

With the Commons still reeling from the reshuffle, the UK, US, and Australia have formed a new security alliance, the Aukus pact. Many have seen this as early preparation for a more aggressive China, as the US nuclear submarines being gifted to Australia will be able to reach territories like Taiwan without refuelling. To discuss the pact, and the fallout from yesterday's reshuffle, Isabel Hardman talks to Katy Balls and James Forsyth.

Transcript

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0:00.0

Coffee House Shots is sponsored by EDF, Britain's biggest generator of zero carbon electricity.

0:06.5

Find out how we are busy helping Britain achieve net zero at www.edu-edfenergy.com. Hello and welcome to Coffee House Shots for Spectators' Daily Politics Podcast. I'm Isabel Hardman

0:26.4

and I'm joined by James Forsyth and Katie Balls. Well, we've got the aftermath of the big moves

0:32.2

in the reshuffle today and more appointments to come from Boris Johnson. James, is there a sort of theme to this reshuffle?

0:39.6

Prime Minister's often like to send a big message by moving people around. What's Boris Johnson

0:44.7

trying to tell us? I think the brutality of the reshuffle is in some way the message. This is a sign

0:52.4

that this is a Prime minister who's in charge,

0:54.6

this is a prime minister who isn't worried about coating the pill for those that he's dismissing.

1:00.4

Note the fact that Gavin Williamson hasn't been found some other job in government,

1:05.4

apart from me in education sector, and said he's gone straight to the back benches.

1:09.0

Same goes for Robert Jenrick and

1:10.9

Rob Butler, the other three cabinet departees. I think Liz Truss's promotion to be

1:17.2

foreign secretary reflects the importance that Boris Johnson places on confidence. I mean,

1:24.4

I think one of the things that is true about Robert Johnson is this emphasis he places on boosterism.

1:30.2

He thinks it is true.

1:32.1

He thinks that confidence forget success.

1:35.0

And I think he wants sort of lose trust to go around the world declaring Britain's power and influence.

1:42.1

And I also think that, you know, she is someone whose Katie was pointing out yesterday,

1:46.7

she will be an advocate of this Pacific tilt in foreign policy that you see with this Australia,

1:53.3

US, UK deal. And so I think you can see that there. And then I think on the domestic front,

1:59.6

I think Nizim Zahawawi is meant to be a kind of

2:02.0

reassuring presence of education. You know, we put the guy who was in charge of the vaccines,

...

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