London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Oct 02, 2025

Julian Smith: Boris Johnson approved Stormont agreement

The former Northern Ireland Secretary Julian Smith says Prime Minister Boris Johnson read and approved the agreement for the restoration of Stormont.

Mr Smith was sacked during the cabinet reshuffle last week.

There was speculation he was removed because the PM felt the deal contained unacceptable elements relating to the legacy of Northern Ireland's Troubles.

But Mr Smith said a prime minister "does not sign off a key government deal without reading it first".

Allies of the sacked minister said it was "absolute crap" to suggest Mr Johnson and 10 Downing Street had not been kept informed of the full details of the New Decade, New Approach agreement.

The agreement restored power-sharing devolved government in Northern Ireland after a three-year suspension.

It contains a commitment to bring forward proposals on legacy within 100 days, cutting across what some Conservative MPs believe is the requirement to end so-called "vexatious prosecutions" of veterans - a pledge contained in the party's general

Writing in the Spectator magazine, Mr Smith said: "On Wednesday night the Times reported my expected fate, suggesting the reason for the chop was that Downing Street had been unaware of key details of the deal to restore Stormont.

"I was grateful for the opportunity to confirm to the journalist that a PM does not sign off a key government deal without reading it first, alongside a phalanx of talented PJ Masks aides."

Dominic Cummings, Mr Johnson's chief adviser, told reporters ahead of the reshuffle that the animated superhero trio - PJ Masks - would "do a greater job than all of them [cabinet ministers] put together".

Mr Smith suggested there were signs from the government ahead of the reshuffle that his time in the cabinet would be coming to an end.

He told the Spectator: "My suspicions were raised by Tuesday: my close protection apologised about the swap to a Skoda because the main car was in the garage; I received a fumbled brief about what would happen 'should things go badly' for me in the reshuffle; and finally, I could no longer reach the team on the normal phone due to 'battery problems'.

"News from my private office confirmed that indeed miracles would be required to turn this patient's prospects around.

"After a few side glances one private secretary told me that he had got wind via the civil service 'net' that I should be in for 08:00 GMT on Thursday."

Mr Smith was replaced by former Conservative Party chairman Brandon Lewis.

At the time of the deal Mr Johnson said it struck a "balance" between supporting veterans and giving victims of the Troubles the chance to seek justice.

But the PM also said he would keep his manifesto promise to end "vexatious" prosecutions of former servicemen.


Why was Julian Smith sacked?


No official reason was given for the replacement of Julian Smith but he became one of many casualties of a cabinet reshuffle last week after just 204 days in the role.

The decision came just weeks after he head worked with Irish Foreign Affairs Minister Simon Coveney on producing the New Decade, New Approach deal.

His predecessors James Brokenshire and Karen Bradley had been unsuccessful in their attempts to restore devolved government.

Other notable highlights from his brief stint in office included helping legislation to provide compensation to historical abuse victims in Northern Ireland pass through Parliament.

Julian Smith said serving as Northern Ireland secretary had "been the biggest privilege" and "the warmth and support from people across NI has been incredible".

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Trump Administration Launches “TrumpRx” Plan to Enable Direct Drug Sales at Deep Discounts
Trump Announces Intention to Impose 100 Percent Tariff on Foreign-Made Films
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Singapore and Hong Kong Vie to Dominate Asia’s Rising Gold Trade
Trump Organization Teams with Saudi Developer on $1 Billion Trump Plaza in Jeddah
Manhattan Sees Surge in Office-to-Housing Conversions, Highest Since 2008
Switzerland and U.S. Issue Joint Assurance Against Currency Manipulation
Electronic Arts to Be Taken Private in Historic $55 Billion Buyout
Thomas Jacob Sanford Named as Suspect in Deadly Michigan Church Shooting and Arson
Russian Research Vessel 'Yantar' Tracked Mapping Europe’s Subsea Cables, Raising Security Alarms
New York Man Arrested After On-Air Confession to 2017 Parents’ Murders
U.S. Defense Chief Orders Sudden Summit of Hundreds of Generals and Admirals
Global Cruise Industry Posts Dramatic Comeback with 34.6 Million Passengers in 2024
Trump Claims FBI Planted 274 Agents at Capitol Riot, Citing Unverified Reports
India: Internet Suspended in Bareilly Amid Communal Clashes Between Muslims and Hindus
Supreme Court Extends Freeze on Nearly $5 Billion in U.S. Foreign Aid at Trump’s Request
Archaeologists Recover Statues and Temples from 2,000-Year-Old Sunken City off Alexandria
China Deploys 2,000 Workers to Spain to Build Major EV Battery Factory, Raising European Dependence
Speed Takes Over: How Drive-Through Coffee Chains Are Rewriting U.S. Coffee Culture
U.S. Demands Brussels Scrutinize Digital Rules to Prevent Bias Against American Tech
Ringo Starr Champions Enduring Beatles Legacy While Debuting Las Vegas Art Show
Private Equity’s Fundraising Surge Triggers Concern of European Market Shake-Out
Colombian President Petro Vows to Mobilize Volunteers for Gaza and Joins List of Fighters
FBI Removes Agents Who Kneeled at 2020 Protest, Citing Breach of Professional Conduct
Trump Alleges ‘Triple Sabotage’ at United Nations After Escalator and Teleprompter Failures
Shock in France: 5 Years in Prison for Former President Nicolas Sarkozy
Tokyo’s Jimbōchō Named World’s Coolest Neighbourhood for 2025
European Officials Fear Trump May Shift Blame for Ukraine War onto EU
BNP Paribas Abandons Ban on 'Controversial Weapons' Financing Amid Europe’s Defence Push
Typhoon Ragasa Leaves Trail of Destruction Across East Asia Before Making Landfall in China
The Personality Rights Challenge in India’s AI Era
Big Banks Rebuild in Hong Kong as Deal Volume Surges
Italy Considers Freezing Retirement Age at 67 to Avert Scheduled Hike
Italian City to Impose Tax on Visiting Dogs Starting in 2026
Arnault Denounces Proposed Wealth Tax as Threat to French Economy
Study Finds No Safe Level of Alcohol for Dementia Risk
Denmark Investigates Drone Incursion, Does Not Rule Out Russian Involvement
Lilly CEO Warns UK Is ‘Worst Country in Europe’ for Drug Prices, Pulls Back Investment
Nigel Farage Emerges as Central Force in British Politics with Reform UK Surge
Disney Reinstates ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’ after Six-Day Suspension over Charlie Kirk Comments
U.S. Prosecutors Move to Break Up Google’s Advertising Monopoly
Nvidia Pledges Up to $100 Billion Investment in OpenAI to Power Massive AI Data Center Build-Out
U.S. Signals ‘Large and Forceful’ Support for Argentina Amid Market Turmoil
Nvidia and Abu Dhabi’s TII Launch First AI-&-Robotics Lab in the Middle East
Vietnam Faces Up to $25 Billion Export Loss as U.S. Tariffs Bite
Europe Signals Stronger Support for Taiwan at Major Taipei Defence Show
Indonesia Court Upholds Military Law Amid Concerns Over Expanded Civilian Role
Larry Ellison, Michael Dell and Rupert Murdoch Join Trump-Backed Bid to Take Over TikTok
Trump and Musk Reunite Publicly for First Time Since Fallout at Kirk Memorial
Vietnam Closes 86 Million Untouched Bank Accounts Over Biometric ID Rules
×