Former UK Finance Secretary Rishi Sunakfavorite to become the next british prime ministerkicked off his campaign Tuesday by promising “honesty,” in an increasingly tense and divisive battle to succeed Boris Johnson.
Eleven candidates initially presented their names to become leader of the ruling Conservative Party and Britain’s next prime minister, after Johnson was forced to say he would resign after support dried up following a series of scandals.
Only those who are nominated by 20 of their 358 Conservative colleagues in Parliament on Tuesday will go on to the first ballot on Wednesday. Then the number of candidates will be quickly reduced to two, and the members of the Conservative Party They will make the final decision.
Secretary of Transportation, Grant Shappswas the first to end his candidacy, throwing his support behind Sunak, whose resignation helped spark the revolt of Conservative ministers and lawmakers that forced Johnson last week to say he would step down.
The new leader faces a very busy start, as well as falling support in opinion polls.
The british economy faces rampant inflation, high debt and low growth, and citizens are facing the tightest financial squeeze in decades, all against the backdrop of an energy crisis exacerbated by the war in Ukraine, which has triggered fuel prices.
As the race heats up, rival campaigns are intensifying their criticism in private, pointing to financial or other issues looming over their opponents.
With most candidates saying they would cut taxes if they win, Sunak, the current bookmakers’ favourite, has tried to present himself as the serious candidate, promising “grown-up” honesty and “no fairy tales”.
“It is not credible to promise much more spending and less taxes,” Sunak said.
As Chancellor of the Exchequer, Sunak put Britain on track for its biggest tax burden since the 1950s, and other prime ministerial hopefuls have criticized him on taxes, mostly saying they would lead cuts immediately.
Sunak said he did not want to distance himself from the fiscal decisions he made during the coronavirus pandemic. Covid-19.
“While that may be politically inconvenient for me, it’s also the truth. As is the fact that once we’ve got inflation under control, I’ll lower the tax burden,” he said. “It’s a question of when, not if.”
