On the 44th day in Downing Street, Liz Truss could not resist the pressure and announced her resignation as leader of the Conservative Party. The idea is that the successor – and future head of government – will be chosen next Friday, with candidates having to rally the support of 100 deputies (there are only 357) to take part in the race at 2 p.m. Monday. The task of finding a unanimous name yesterday seemed complicated yesterday, as was the division in the party and the number of candidates discussed: from former Treasury Secretary Rishi Sunak, defeated by Truss in the summer, to former Prime Minister Boris Johnson . The opposition is demanding early elections, but this is an unrealistic scenario.
The day after I told the delegates I was a “fighter”, not a “dropout”, the prime minister admitted he was unable to “fulfill the mandate” for which she was elected. “I took office at a time of great economic and international instability,” Truss said in a brief statement to No. 10, speaking of the rising cost of living and the war in Ukraine. “And we set out a vision for a low-tax, high-growth economy that benefited from the Brexit freedoms,” he recalls. However, his mini-budget was poorly received by the markets and, despite several setbacks, Truss finally gave in and resigned.
Over the course of the morning, the Prime Minister had met with the head of the 1922 Committee, Graham Brady, who will organize the internal elections – the party’s second of the year. Truss remains at the head of government until a successor or successor is elected, in a process he said would take a week. “This will ensure we stay on track to deliver on our tax plans [será a 31 de outubro] and maintain the economic stability and national security of our country,” he said.
one hundred delegates
The internal election rules were later released by Brady, who revealed that: candidates must be able to rally the support of 100 delegates at 2 p.m. Monday to enter the race. This means that there are a maximum of three candidates. Should it be necessary to reduce this number to two, this will be done in a vote by the deputies later in the day. The two names will then be submitted online to the choice of militants, the results of which will be known next Friday. But all this may not even be necessary if a consensus candidate emerges on Monday.
Before the rules were known, the stakes about who a candidate could be had multiplied. One of the most talked about names was Rishi Sunak, who had received the most votes from the delegates (137) in the race to replace Boris Johnson, but lost to Truss in the militants’ vote. Another name that was spoken was that of Penny Mordaunt, current Conservative leader in parliament, who lost to Truss the opportunity to go to the final game by just eight votes, but still had the support of 105 deputies (above the minimum now required).
There was also talk of the possible candidacy of Suella Braverman, who resigned on Wednesday as interior minister, who at the time had criticized the “direction of the government”, or of Kemi Badenoch, who was a surprise in the battle for the succession. from Johnson. . The problem is that with the minimum of a hundred supports needed, this is beyond the capabilities of either.
Finally, Johnson’s own name was cited by numerous delegates. The former prime minister was caught on vacation in the Caribbean, but was said to be on his way to London yesterday. In his farewell address at Downing Street on September 6, after he was forced to resign amid his government scandals, Johnson hinted at a possible return. But I would think of the longer term, if Truss didn’t do well in the general election – which is scheduled for January 2025 at the latest.
44 days later, however, there is another chance, with some deputies saying he is the only one with the popular mandate to become prime minister. However, others point out that he is still under investigation and that once he is evicted, he will not be able to return. The fact that you need 100 support could be a bucket of cold water, though, with some thinking the limit is so high as to stop it – because the militants’ polls show it was likely to win.
Opposition calls for elections
As the Conservative Party prepares for internal elections, the entire opposition is demanding snap elections as the future head of government will no longer have a mandate from British voters.. “After 12 years of conservative failure, the British deserve much better than this revolving door of chaos,” said in a statement that Labor leader Keir Starmer is calling for a general election.
The same defends the leader of the Liberal Democrats, Ed Davey. “We don’t need another Conservative Prime Minister jumping from crisis to crisis. We need general elections now and the Conservatives out of power.”, wrote on Twitter. “It is unwise for conservatives to claim that they can replace Liz Truss with a leader capable of exercising authority, nationally or internationally,” the Greens said in a statement.
Scotland’s head of government and leader of the Scottish Nationalist Party, Nicola Sturgeon, also wants snap elections after she hasn’t received a single call from Truss in 44 days. “There are no words to adequately describe this total mess,” said on Twitter, saying the situation is beyond any “hyperbole” and regretting that it is the citizens who pay the price. For her, the general election is a “democratic imperative”.
However, with a comfortable majority in parliament (357 out of 650 MPs) and in light of polls showing they are 30 percentage points behind Labour, Conservatives are unwilling to go to the polls.
The 44 days of a chaotic mandate
September 6: A day after she was declared the winner of the election within the Conservative Party (with 21 thousand votes more than Rishi Sunak), Liz Truss is confirmed as Prime Minister during an audience with Queen Elizabeth II.
Sep 8: The support package to help families pay the utility bills comes into the background with the announcement of Elizabeth II’s death. The ten days of national mourning lead to the suspension of government activities.
Sep 23: Finance Minister Kwasi Kwarteng announces the tax cut for the richest and cancels the planned tax increase for companies, among other controversial measures in his mini-budget. It also reveals that energy aid will cost £60 billion. In practice, it announces a decrease in revenue and an increase in expenditure, indicating that everything will be paid for with loans, increasing the national debt. Markets immediately react downwards.
Sep 28: The Bank of England must intervene after UK pension funds are at risk.
October 3: Kwarteng and Truss are forced to repeal one of the most controversial measures, cutting taxes on the richest. But the situation remains difficult.
14 October: After further setbacks, Kwarteng is fired, with Jeremy Hunt as finance minister.
October 17: Hunt is tearing apart virtually all that was left of the mini-budget, signaling the need for tough action — the medium-term plan will be announced on October 31.
19 October: Home Secretary Suella Braverman resigns over an alleged security breach, but leaves with criticism of Truss.
October 20: 44 days after taking office, Truss will resign and a new leader is expected to be elected October 28.
Source: DN
