LONDON — Theresa May came under immediate pressure Thursday on her first full day as Britain's new prime minister after a series of surprise appointments to her Cabinet, including the gaffe-prone Boris Johnson as foreign minister. Three weeks after Britain voted to leave the European Union, May also came under fire from EU leaders, who pressed her to trigger a Brexit as quickly as possible. And as economic uncertainty swirls from the shock decision to quit the bloc, the Bank of England was mulling possible rate cuts to stimulate the economy. Her first choices for her close team sparked surprise, including former London mayor Johnson as Britain's top diplomat and longtime euroskeptic David Davis in charge of the "exiting the European Union" portfolio.
While Euroskeptic tabloids rejoiced, the Daily Mirror said Johnson's appointment left the UK's credibility "hanging by a thread." Johnson himself said he was "humbled". New finance minister Philip Hammond who took over from George Osborne, a stalwart of Cameron's government who fell by the wayside in the transition, confirmed there would be "no emergency budget." May, meanwhile, still has several top cabinet posts to fill, including the health, education, Scotland, work and business briefs. She kept Michael Fallon as defense minister, while former energy minister Amber Rudd was promoted to May's old interior minister job at the Home Office.
