"They Never Wanted To Stop The Boats" Suella Braverman

Suella Braverman (0:01)

People are scared, they've lost faith in the government. They have no confidence in the authorities. They're beginning to organize themselves, mobilize themselves and take the law into their own hands. I was bound by Prime Minister, who didn't really want to stop the boats. He takes a very liberal view on migration, which is why he didn't want to cut immigration. He was ambivalent about stopping the boats. I mean, he once privately said to me that, why are so many people upset about the boats? These people come here and work. That's good for the economy.

Konstantin Kisin (0:33)

Rishi Sunak said this to you?

Suella Braverman (0:34)

Of course, yeah. He said that to me when he was chancellor.

Konstantin Kisin (0:37)

When Rishi Sunak was chancellor, he said, I don't understand why people are upset about the boats. These people come here and work. Yes. Wow.

Francis Foster (0:49)

This episode is sponsored by our friends at Hillsdale College. Right after this episode, go check out their incredible online courses, which are absolutely free at hillsdale.edu/trigger.

Konstantin Kisin (1:02)

Suella Braverman, welcome back to TRIGGERnometry.

Suella Braverman (1:04)

Hello.

Konstantin Kisin (1:05)

Good to be back. It's great to have you back. Last time, of course, you came on the show shortly after no longer being, let's say, a Rishi Sunak's home secretary.

Suella Braverman (1:14)

Yes.

Konstantin Kisin (1:15)

And a lot has happened since, not least you've written a book, which is why we're happy and keen to have you on.

But let's talk, you talk about your family history first in the book, and the where are you from question, which we'll touch on perhaps later. But interesting for us, of course, and for our audience would be having left the conservative government at the time, you were still a member of the conservative party. And I remember asking you one or two slightly more pointed questions, and you being very diplomatic about your answers. You've since, of course, left the conservative party of joint reform. So what can you tell us about why the conservative government failed this country, which I think universally is recognized, including within the conservative party now, that you couldn't say at the time?

Suella Braverman (2:02)

Yes. Well, that's a very good introduction because I actually wrote this book for all of those people, including myself, who are bluntly furious with the last conservative government and the last labor government, but most recently last conservative government, for the damage that they did to this country. And now I'm no longer in the conservative party. I am liberated to speak honestly against what I see as institutional cowardice and deceit, frankly. I said it internally, time and time again, when I was Home Secretary, when I was holding a great office of state, the most senior woman in the government, trying to get the conservative government to do the right thing on small boats, on visas, on Islamism, on anti-Semitism, on our streets.

And it refused time and time again.

Konstantin Kisin (3:01)

What is it?

Suella Braverman (3:02)

The conservative party, last conservative prime minister, conservative cabinet members. And by that, I mean Rishi Sunak, I mean Jeremy Hunt, I mean Kemi Badenok, I mean Tom Tugendhat, many of those people who are still running the conservative party today. And so what I set out in my book, actually, is from David Cameron through to Theresa May, Boris Johnson, Rishi Sunak, Kemi Badenok. It's different faces, but it's the same tactics, it's the same deceit, it's the same modus operandi, the same family.

You know, promise big, go big on the rhetoric, but deliver very small and actually fail people.

Konstantin Kisin (3:44)

We had journalist Dan Hodges on the show recently. I actually thought it was a great discussion, he made some interesting points. But the one aspect of it that Francis and I both found quite frustrating is when it came to the issue of small boats. And let's be honest, that issue is now becoming the number one issue other than the economy, which is obviously huge as well, for a lot of people in this country, not just sort of the fringes of the right, it's gone mainstream, fair to say.

And there was the sense from what, no matter what we said, it was always, oh, it's too difficult, it's too complicated, you can't do this, so are you saying we should invade France? You know, it's all of that. You as Home Secretary were attempting to do something, no offense to you in saying this, but you failed like everybody else. I failed.

Suella Braverman (4:28)

I'm honest about that.

Konstantin Kisin (4:29)

Yeah.

Suella Braverman (4:30)

It's undeniable.