Rishi Sunak was slightly aggressive, the parting impeccable and the suit very well cut. Liz Truss, less rigid and more confident than usual, wore a royal blue dress in the colors of the Conservative Party. The former Chancellor of the Exchequer and the British Foreign Minister clashed for an hour on Monday, July 25, on the BBC, during the first debate organized between the two candidates to replace Boris Johnson at 10 Downing Street.
The exchanges were lively, centered as since the beginning of the campaign, in mid-July, on the crisis of purchasing power, Mr. Sunak persisting in defending the need to fight inflation as a priority (now at more than 9% in the UK), Liz Truss insisting on her agenda “bold”with massive tax cuts ” since the first day “. The deplorable state of the national healthcare system and Brexit were barely mentioned.
Rishi Sunak lagging behind in the polls
The two politicians battled in a performance hall in Stoke-on-Trent, a city in the Midlands known for having voted overwhelmingly in favor of Brexit during the 2016 referendum, facing an audience of a few dozen inhabitants who voted conservative in the general elections of 2019. In reality, they were directly addressed to the 160,000 members of the party to whom it will fall, from 1er August and until September 2, to vote to decide between them. The name of the new British Prime Minister will be announced on September 5.
Rishi Sunak, 42, had little to lose. Labeled in spite of himself as a moderate, accused of “treachery” by those close to Mr. Johnson (his resignation on July 5 precipitated the fall of the Prime Minister), the former Chancellor of the Exchequer is lagging behind in the polls. According to a YouGov poll published on July 21, 62% of party members polled preferred Liz Truss, compared to 38% saying they would choose Mr Sunak. Despite his oral fluency, this son of Indian immigrants who made a fortune in finance failed to turn the tide Monday night. According to a poll conducted by Opinium after the debate, 39% of those questioned (conservative voters or not) found Liz Truss the most convincing, 38% preferred her colleague.
On the form, Mme Truss, 47, avoided missteps and delivered a less robotic performance than usual. She appeared calmer than her interlocutor, who kept interrupting her. Mr. Johnson’s foreign secretary has certainly had a difficult start in the campaign – she narrowly climbed into the leading duo – but her positioning on the right of the party is starting to pay off.
You have 60.02% of this article left to read. The following is for subscribers only.