It’s not just MPs who are abandoning faith in Boris Johnson. The embattled PM appears to have alienated the entire state of Ghana in his latest efforts to save his faltering premiership. Last summer the Tory leader was all smiles with Ghanian President Nana Akufo-Addo, as the two joked around at the global education finance summit in London. But, in an attempt to throw some ‘red meat’ to restless Conservative backbenchers, Johnson has managed to damage relations with the influential West African nation.
For today the Ghanian ministry of foreign affairs has issued a statement rebutting press reports suggesting that the country could process and resettle migrants which have arrived here illegally in the UK. The proposed policy was one of several briefed to the press as part of ‘Operation Red Meat’ to shore up Johnson’s flagging support within Parliament. It was intended to be a response to the small boats crisis which saw some 28,000 migrants successfully cross the Channel in 2021.
But now in magisterial tones, the Ghanian government has opted to publicly and humiliatingly reject such suggestions, dismissing the initiative as ‘Operation Dead Meat.’ It released an open letter declaring that ‘Ghana has not engaged with the UK on any such plan and does not intend to consider any such operation in the future… the Ministry advises that any publication that implies otherwise should be ignored.’ Ouch.
First it was Albania which rejected offshoring migrants and now it’s Ghana’s turn. Boris Johnson appears to be making as many enemies at the UN conference table as he’s gaining in the parliamentary tea rooms.
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