The British Tories have appointed former Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak as the new party leader – his rivals withdrew. Now the prime minister-designate must unite his party and lead the country out of its economic misery.
New Tory leader and UK Prime Minister-elect Rishi Sunak arrives at Conservative Party headquarters in London.
In the crisis-ridden Great Britain, events are overturning: On Monday, 42-year-old Rishi Sunak was elected the new conservative party leader and prime minister-designate. This makes him the third head of government in three months. His predecessor Liz Truss had to throw in the towel on Thursday after just 45 days in office.
Sunak was able to rally more than half of the 357 Tory MPs behind him in the group’s internal decision by the end of Monday afternoon. He easily crossed the hurdle of 100 nominations. His last remaining competitor, Penny Mordaunt, the incumbent Majority Leader in the House of Commons, withdrew her candidacy at literally the last second after struggling to pass the 100 supporter threshold. Boris Johnson had already withdrawn from the race on Sunday evening.
Penny Mordaunt, the incumbent Majority Leader in the House of Commons, withdrew her candidacy at the last second, paving the way for Rishi Sunak.
First Prime Minister of Asian descent
Since Sunak was the only candidate left, he was elected party leader without an online vote lasting several days among the around 180,000 conservative party members having to be convened by Friday. The waiver of this member survey spares the country a prolonged power vacuum. Once Liz Truss formally with King Charles III. resigned, the monarch will put Sunak in charge of forming a new government. The transfer of power could take place on Tuesday.
The Labor Party, which is clearly ahead in the polls, speaks of a democratic deficit and is calling for immediate new elections after the renewed change at the Tory leadership. However, the opposition parties have no leverage to force the Tories to take this step before the end of the legislature, which does not expire until early 2025.
The 42-year-old Sunak has thus not only become the youngest prime minister in the last 200 years. The Hindu of Indian origin is also the first politician with roots in the former British colonies to rise to the top of government. Sunder Katwala, director of think tank British Future, said Sunak’s election is also a source of pride for many Britons of Asian descent who do not share his conservative leanings.
Setback for Boris Johnson
Over the weekend, Sunak not only won the support of well-known party exponents from the centrist camp, who supported him in the summer when he lost the race to succeed Johnson to Liz Truss. Rather, Brexit hardliners and representatives of the right-wing nationalist wing of the party, such as Steve Baker, Suella Braverman and former Brexit chief negotiator David Frost, also recommended him for election.
The broad bid for Sunak was a setback for Boris Johnson, who only left office in July after a series of affairs. Johnson would have had a good chance of being elected in an online vote at the base. However, he himself was unable to convince a number of allies that his comeback would not only have been in his personal interest, but also in that of the party and the country.
It will not be easy for Sunak to unite the party behind him. Johnson loyalists accuse him of ousting their idol from office. The summer duel over the Johnson successor between Truss and Sunak has also opened up rifts. After Truss unilaterally stocked her cabinet with loyalists and right-wing representatives, Sunak may be tempted to include as many factions as possible.
Boris Johnson once appointed Rishi Sunak Chancellor of the Exchequer, but in July Sunak played a key role in Johnson’s fall.
Budget in a week
In view of the economic situation, the personality of the Chancellor of the Exchequer is particularly important. It is quite conceivable that Sunak will keep Jeremy Hunt, who was appointed by Truss in the greatest need, in order to signal stability to the markets. Hunt has reversed virtually all of Truss’ tax cuts and said it will present a comprehensive budget next Monday. This should show how the government intends to bring public finances back on track in the medium term.
What is certain is that Sunak faces enormously difficult decisions. Post-pandemic, public finances are in dire straits, and Truss’s debt economy has shattered much trust. While markets have responded positively to Sunak’s election (and Johnson’s resignation), the incoming prime minister may now have to implement even more austerity than he would have had six weeks ago.
Inflation, strikes, health crisis
Rampant inflation has triggered a wave of wage demands and strikes, many Britons are fearful of winter because of rising energy and living costs, and the country is facing a recession. At the same time, the state health system is at its limit, which is reflected in months of waiting times and overburdened emergency rooms. This is not an easy environment to push through unpopular tax increases and spending cuts.
Rishi Sunak in his former role as Chancellor of the Exchequer.
How Sunak intends to tackle the problems is unclear. In a brief speech at Tory headquarters on Monday, he spoke of profound economic challenges. “We need stability and unity and I will try everything to bring the country and the party together,” he said. In contrast to Truss, who was elected party leader by Tory members against the will of the majority of MPs, Sunak still has a high level of support in the parliamentary group. This increases his room for manoeuvre.