The U.K. is facing a tough economic challenge, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has warned, vowing to correct the “mistakes” of Liz Truss’s leadership as he began to appoint his new cabinet. The newly appointed Conservative leader said there were “difficult decisions to come” as he delivered his first speech since Downing Street after meeting King Charles. Sunak, 42, is the UK’s first Hindu prime minister, the first of Asian descent and the youngest in more than 200 years.
He was appointed Prime Minister by the king after accepting the resignation of Mrs Truss after just 49 days in office, making her the shortest-tenured leader in history.
At the handover, Mrs Truss held her last cabinet meeting and gave a farewell speech in Downing Street. According to RTE, Sunak said his government will have “integrity, professionalism and accountability at every level” as he is committed to earning the trust of the British public. He said that he is “not daunted” by the task ahead, as he is “ready to lead our country into the future.” Several MPs were seen entering Downing Street Monday afternoon as Mr Sunak made the decision to retain several senior ministers from his predecessor’s senior team as he calls for a stable transitions.
. Chris Heaton-Harris has been re-elected as Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, while Ben Wallace has been appointed as Defense Secretary. It seems to confirm that there will now be a new assembly election when the deadline to restore the NI Executive expires on Friday. Heaton-Harris said last week that if a government was not formed in Northern Ireland by the deadline, new elections would be “required by law”. Chancellor Jeremy Hunt, tasked with keeping Truss’s troubled government stable and working on a long-awaited Halloween tax return, was retained as finance minister.
Grant Shapps, a longtime Johnson loyalist who briefly replaced Braverman at front office and supported Sunak in the last leadership contest, was named affairs secretary. Dominic Raab was retained as Deputy Prime Minister and Attorney General, roles he held under Mr Johnson before being fired by Ms Truss for his support of Mr Sunak. Suella Braverman, who resigned from her post last week under the leadership of Ms Truss, was reconfirmed as Home Secretary by Mr Sunak. Penny Mordaunt, who dropped out of the race to offer Sunak a spectacular political comeback by failing to win 100 Conservative MP nominations, remained as Leader of the House of Commons.
Nadhim Zahawi was appointed Minister without Portfolio. Alister Jack was re-elected Secretary of State for Scotland, while David TC Davies was appointed Secretary of State for Wales. Gillian Keegan was appointed as Minister for Education by Mr Sunak, while Mel Stride was appointed as Minister for Work and Pensions. Therese Coffey was appointed Minister for the Environment by Mr Sunak, while Steve Barclay was appointed Minister for Health. Michael Gove was returned to the roles of Secretary of State for Classification,
Housing and Communities and Minister for Intergovernmental Relations. Meanwhile, Kemi Badenoch has been reconfirmed as Secretary of State for International Trade, as well as Minister for Women and Equality. Michelle Donelan has been reconfirmed as Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport. Nicholas True CBE was appointed Leader of the House of Lords, with responsibility for the Privy Seal.
Other appointments included Simon Hart as chief whip in charge of party discipline in the House of Commons and Oliver Dowden as Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster. Previously, Mr. Sunak said: “I fully appreciate how hard things are and I understand too that I have work to do to restore trust after all that has happened. All I can say is that I am not daunted. I know the high office I have accepted and I hope to live up to its demands. But when the opportunity to serve comes along, you cannot question the moment, only your willingness. So, I stand here before you ready to lead our country into the future. To put your needs above politics, to reach out and build a Government that represents the very best traditions of my party. Together, we can achieve incredible things. We will create a future worthy of the sacrifices so many have made and fill tomorrow, and every day thereafter, with hope,” reports RTE.
Sunak has ruled out snap general elections called for by opposition parties as the Tories advance to their third prime minister during Johnson’s 2019 term. Occupational health spokesman Wes Streeting reiterated his party’s call for a general election, saying “the public are clamouring for a say.The Conservative Party is a sclerotic mess. They are chaotic and who’s to say Rishi Sunak isn’t going to be out in six months’ time because you can hear the knives sharpening in Westminster of the disgruntled Borisites … who still think Rishi knifed Boris Johnson in the back,” he said, reported RTE.
Sunak, whose resignation from the Johnson government in July hastened a mass exodus that led to the downfall of the then prime minister, began yesterday by telling Conservative MPs behind closed doors in the House of Commons that they face an “existential moment”. Three MPs in the room said their message to the party was that they must “join or die” as they focus on meeting the public’s priorities during a cost-of-living crisis. The Taoiseach expressed his congratulations to Sunak stating that the close relationship “between our two countries is built on shared history, deep cultural and economic ties, and strong people-to-people links,” reports RTE.
According to RTE, in a statement, Micheál Martin said: “Our shared responsibility as joint stewards of the Good Friday Agreement, working together in partnership, is vital to support peace and prosperity in Northern Ireland, particularly now in the absence of a properly functioning Assembly and Executive.” Martin said there is a real opportunity for the EU and UK to find agreed solutions on issues related to the Northern Ireland Protocol and urged Sunak “to move quickly to substantive engagement with the EU on that basismove quickly towards a substantial engagement with the EU on that basis,” reported RTE. He said he was “committed to a strong and deep British-Irish relationship” and looks forward “to early engagement with Prime Minister Sunak on the important issues we face on these islands and globally,” reports RTE.
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