The race to succeed Prime Minister Boris Johnson narrowed on Wednesday, with the Conservative Party choosing the two finalists. Of the 11 initial competitors, former Finance Minister Rishi Sunak and current Foreign Secretary Liz Truss remained in the race.
In the fifth round of voting, Sunak got 137 votes, followed by Truss with 113, just ahead of former Defense Secretary Penny Mordaunt, with 105. In some ways, the result is surprising, because Mordaunt came out ahead in intent polls. of votes over Truss in the succession race.
Boris announced in early July that he would step down, pressured by a series of scandals and the collective resignation of members of his government. The prime minister, however, will remain in the post until a replacement is chosen, which is scheduled to take place in September, according to the party’s calendar.
Find out who the finalists are.
Rishi Sunak
A former finance secretary touted for launching an economic rescue package to fight the crisis caused by the Covid pandemic, Sunak is the favorite to succeed Boris – he currently has the most support among Conservative Party MPs. His popularity in the acronym does not seem to have been shaken by the fact that his resignation a few weeks ago led to the former prime minister’s downfall.
If elected, the former analyst at Goldman Sachs has promised to cut taxes as soon as May’s 9.1% inflation is brought under control. “It’s a matter of when, not if,” he said, touching on one of the most sensitive points for Britons — the price rise is the biggest in 40 years. When he was secretary, one of the criticisms he received was that he did little to control the rising cost of living.
Sunak, 42, was the first Hindu to hold a secretary position, a position he rose to in 2015. However, although he says he is proud to be the son of immigrants — his father Yashvir was born in Kenya and his mother Usha Sunak , Tanzania—he advocates a tough policy on the UK’s borders, with Boris’s plan to deport undocumented migrants arriving on the island to Rwanda.
“We need to build a new consensus on the people who come to our country. Yes to talented and innovative workers, but with control of our borders,” he said in a campaign speech. Changing immigration law, he said, was one of the reasons he supported Brexit in 2016.
A millionaire, Sunak is married to the heiress of an Indian tycoon, Akshata Murty, who came under public scrutiny for having an advantageous tax status that allowed him to avoid paying millions in UK taxes. She ended up announcing that she would pay taxes on overseas earnings to ease the pressure.
Labor took advantage of the loophole and questioned whether he had ever benefited from using tax havens. The Independent newspaper published a report in which Sunak was listed as a beneficiary of funds in the British Virgin Islands and the Cayman Islands. A spokesperson for him said he was unaware of the allegations.
Liz Truss
Dubbed by supporters as “the new iron lady” in reference to former prime minister Margaret Thatcher, Truss, 46, is seen as the continuity candidate due to her loyalty to Boris.
The foreign secretary is part of the far right wing of the conservatives, an ideology she adopted while studying politics, philosophy and economics at Oxford University. Before, however, Truss had a flirtation with the Liberal Democrats, influenced by her parents, both members of the Labor Party.
She launched her candidacy to succeed the current prime minister promising to put the British economy on an upward trajectory until the next election in 2024. “I would start cutting taxes from day one to help people cope with the cost of living. it is right to raise taxes now,” she wrote in an article in the Telegraph newspaper.
Measures would include reversing an increase in pension contributions that took effect in April and not raising business taxes, which would be essential, she says, to attract investment.
In parliament since 2010, Truss was part of the cabinet that approved the much-criticized project to send undocumented immigrants to Rwanda, but has not publicly commented on the decision since running for prime minister. She voted against Brexit but soon said she had changed her mind.
Also in this regard, Truss introduced legislation to Parliament to unilaterally replace some post-Brexit trade rules with Northern Ireland, a political stance she must follow that has deepened tensions between the two sides. With Vladimir Putin’s Russian invasion of Ukraine, her role gained international prominence. She argues that the economic sanctions imposed on Moscow must remain until Russian forces withdraw completely.
