Commenting on the removal of Suella Braverman as Home Secretary, Daniel Kebede, General Secretary of the National Education Union, said:
“Rishi Sunak should never have brought Suella Braverman back into Government in the first place.
“Her list of sackable offences is long and she should have been shown the door much sooner.
“Whether it was her demeaning and disgraceful comments about rough sleeping being a ‘lifestyle choice’, or her divisive rhetoric and untruths about multi-culturalism having failed it has been clear for some time that she is not fit for public office.
“When Braverman talked of ‘existential challenges’ from migration, she was pinning a label to each and every student who is, or may be thought to be, from a migrant family. In one fell swoop she made their lives more hazardous and made it harder for teachers and schools to build empathy and community cohesion.
“As educators, concerned to safeguard our students and help them engage successfully in school or college, we have every reason to point out how her words increase prejudice and why they cause deep concern for the staff who are working hard to support children and young people from all backgrounds and communities.
“Today is not a day to rejoice as teachers are having to pick up the pieces of a Home Secretary who has threatened community cohesion and heightened tensions. It beggars belief that she was allowed by the Prime Minister to cause such damage for so long. The new Home Secretary now needs to work towards healing those divisions and ensuring community cohesion is their priority.”