Meet Larry the Cat, Chief Mouser to the Cabinet of the United Kingdom. It is not often you see a cat holding a position of ministerial equivalence around the world. However, Larry the Cat wants you to know he has the status. And he takes it as seriously as any of his colleagues in the Cabinet.
A brown and white tabby, Larry is a rescued stray cat from Battersea Dogs & Cats Home, an animal rescue center and among the oldest in the business.
The then Prime Minister, David Cameron, back in 2011, adopted Larry to move in with his family. Still, when the time came for the nation’s chief executive to exit 10 Downing Street, the official residence of the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. He decided against taking the fur guy away, insisting that Larry was not his personal property, a civil servant.
As a minister of state, Larry has a range of responsibilities entrusted to him by Her Majesty’s Government. His busy schedule includes greeting guests coming into Number 10 and testing furniture for napping quality.
Concerning the numerous mice in and around the centuries-old flat, the British four-legged political stalwart “Larry” has assured the government and the people of the UK that plans to rid them from the seat of government are in the pipeline.
Larry is a difficult feline to impress. He shies away from prominent politicians when they pay a visit, although David Cameron joked that former American president Barack Obama was an exception.
“Funnily enough, he liked Obama. Obama gave him a stroke, and he was alright with it.”
Larry made international headlines in June 2019 when he sought shelter from the ensuing rains under Donald Trump’s armored Cadillac, the “Beast.” But unfortunately, this experience caused the world’s most powerful man to wait a while as attempts by the Secret Service and Downing Street staff could not lure him out of his comfort zone.
The government official’s well-being is financed and seen by the staff of 10 Downing Street through the in-house quiz and other competitions. This is not to include the on-the-job birds, mice, and reptiles the former stray cat might pounce on.
Prime Ministers have had cats around for centuries. However, it was not until 2011 that the position of Chief Mouser to the Cabinet was created.
Fortunately for the government, this civil servant will do his very best. He will be present when the Cabinet meets to discuss the growing inflation and stagnant wages.
GCBM Contributor: Mitchell Amoamah, Email: asaremitchie@gmail.com