The 11-Minute Phone Call That Sparked Gavin Williamson's Cabinet Sacking

An eleven minute phone call is what appears to have sparked Gavin Williamson’s spectacular and dramatic downfall from government. When the defence secretary talked to Telegraph journalist Steven Swinford last Tuesday, he set in train a sequence of events that ended with the first leak-related sacking of a Cabinet minister in 70 years. Communications records, showing that the pair spoke after two crucial meetings of the National Security Council (NSC) and Cabinet that day, are understood to have revealed the exact length and time of the call. In a two-hour session with the official leak inquiry investigators last Friday, Williamson strenuously denied that he had discussed any confidential material from the NSC meeting, never mind the Huawei case. He’d chatted instead about the Tory leadership, Brexit and other matters, he said. But it’s clear that his explanation simply didn’t wash with the inquiry - or with Theresa May.