With the “winter catastrophe” duly announced, which is what the British are calling the consequences of rising energy prices, the election for prime minister in the United Kingdom is taking on dramatic airs in its final stretch.
Competing for the post of leader of the Conservative Party — and, as the party has a majority in Parliament, for the prime minister — are current Foreign Secretary Elizabeth Truss, an outspoken favorite, and former Finance Secretary Rishi Sunak. The election for the succession of Boris Johnson is not general: only the approximately 160,000 party members vote, who send the ballots by mail. The deadline is next Friday (2), and the announcement of the winner should go out on Monday (5).
The term catastrophe to refer to the increase in energy is no exaggeration: Ofgem, the regulatory agency for the gas and energy market in the country, announced on Friday (26) an 80% increase in bills starting in October. The average annual ticket in England, around 2,000 pounds (R$ 12,000), will jump to close to 3,600 pounds (R$ 21,500).
It’s money many British families simply don’t have. A further increase is expected in January 2023, to something around 4,500 pounds (R$ 27,000). It’s the same amount that made an ice cream man go viral on social media when he complained about the abusive energy increases in Italy a few days ago. To top it off, rising food prices pushed UK annual inflation to 10.1% last month, the highest in 40 years.
“The new prime minister will need a radical policy of support for the energy consumer – such as a freeze on tariffs and solidarity rates or an unprecedented injection of tens of billions of pounds – to prevent the deepening of the bill crisis from becoming a serious crisis. threat to the physical and financial health of families this winter [no hemisfério Norte]”, said the Resolution Foundation think tank in a report widely circulated by the English press.
It is in this context that Liz Truss (who is around 30 points clear, according to recent polls) and Rishi Sunak already differ on ideas about what to do to placate the catastrophe. While Sunak has talked about helping families with money, Truss has been vague about it, even though she told the Financial Times a few weeks ago that she didn’t believe in “doing donations.” The lack of a project on the subject has caused stress among the voters of the Secretary of Foreign Affairs.
One, heard by The Guardian, said he “would like to see more” and that, with Ofgem’s announcement on Friday, he hoped Truss would better address the issue. Another voter said he was “disappointed with the lack of focus on what really matters to people”. More assertively, MP Michael Gove, from the same Conservative Party, accused the candidate of “taking a vacation from reality”.
Sunak, on the other hand, has been far more assertive. “The first rule of thumb of any crisis is to assume you are facing one. We are facing an energy crisis and I have a plan to get us through it,” the conservative said. “I will lead a national effort to increase our domestic energy supply and cut waste. I will also make sure our country is never in that position again. I will work towards the UK being fully energy independent by 2045.”
On Thursday night (25), the two participated in a debate for a few hundred supporters in Norwich (eastern England). They highlighted patriotism, extolled individual responsibility and attacked Scottish Labor and separatists. On energy, Sunak advocated helping the disadvantaged, while Truss preferred to talk about tax cuts.
The increase in energy costs in Europe stems directly from the Ukrainian War, which has just completed six months. As part of the sanctions imposed on Russia for the invasion of its neighbor, the European Union agreed to a target of 15% reduction in gas, in addition to radically reducing the purchase of Russian oil. All this also impacts prices in the United Kingdom, which is no longer part of the bloc.
In the British case, Russian gas represents only 4% of imports, but even so, the country intends to explore options to also end this demand by the end of the year. In addition to being major producers of oil and derivatives, the islands buy mainly from the US, the Netherlands and the Persian Gulf.
Married and mother of two, Liz Truss, 46, has held several positions in Parliament. Before becoming Secretary of Foreign Affairs, she was Minister for Women and Equality and preceded her current rival Sunak in the Finance portfolio.
In Brexit, the referendum on the United Kingdom’s exit from the European Union, she initially took a position against it. She later changed her stance, saying the split offered an opportunity to “change the way things work”. In the Ukrainian War, she took a tough stand against Russia, insisting that all forces should be withdrawn from the invaded country.
If she wins, she will be the third woman in the post, after Margaret Thatcher (1979-1990) and Theresa May (2016-2019), both also from the Conservative Party.
Married to the heiress of an Indian billionaire and father of two daughters, Rishi Shunak, 42, is blamed for the downfall of Boris Johnson, having resigned on July 5 as finance minister and accelerated the image crisis of the country. resigning premier.
In the pandemic, he announced a £350 billion relief package, but his popularity was shaken when he violated lockdown rules in June 2020.
