May ‘sidelined’ by migration taskforce

David Cameron

David Cameron will personally handle Britain’s immigration policy in a move that some newspapers have said sidelines his home secretary.

The prime minister will chair an “implementation task force” on migration, one of many bodies responsible for fulfilling goals from the Conservative manifesto.

Other task forces cover health and social care, housing and “improving the lives of troubled families”.

But while government ministers will generally chair these bodies and report directly to Downing Street, Mr Cameron himself will take control of the immigration task force instead of Home Secretary Theresa May, who is responsible for immigration matters.

Theresa May

The Times newspaper said it was a sign that Mrs May was being sidelined. It wrote: “Mrs May was a favourite to succeed Mr Cameron until he secured a surprise election victory last month. She is the longest-serving home secretary for more than 50 years and has been described by Mr Cameron as “brilliant” at her job.

“However, she has never been part of his inner circle and has long had a difficult relationship with Downing Street.

“Some of her supporters fear that Mr Cameron is seeking to clip her wings to help his friend George Osborne emerge as a frontrunner to succeed him when he makes good on a promise to stand down before 2020.”