Liz Truss: ‘We should have laid the ground better’
Liz Truss joined Laura Kuenssberg in Birmingham as the Conservative party conference kicks off. In more ordinary times, a new leader might expect to bask in the warm glow of their recent election. However, there is no doubt that Liz Truss can expect considerable scrutiny this week, not least with the Conservatives now a distant second to Labour in the opinion polls. Unsurprisingly, the government’s mini Budget was at the top of the agenda, and Truss expressed some remorse at how the ambitious financial package had spooked the markets:
Truss: I am committed to abolishing the 45p tax rate
Truss confirmed she was sticking to one of the mini Budget’s most controversial measures. She argued that the 45p top rate of tax did not raise a significant amount of money, and that it made the UK uncompetitive. She also established that the decision was that of herself and the Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng, and not discussed with the cabinet before the announcement:
PM: People in 2019 voted for investment and growth
When challenged by Kuenssberg about her mandate coming only from Conservative party members, Truss claimed instead that she had inherited the mandate of those voting for Boris Johnson in 2019. She argued that her plan would ultimately be able to deliver the investment and higher wages that election had promised:
Michael Gove: Mini Budget ‘has the wrong values’
Watching the Prime Minister’s interview was the veteran cabinet minister Michael Gove. Gove and Truss are known to have experienced strained relations over the years and Gove reportedly jumped before he was pushed out of the new Truss administration. He told Kuenssberg he was ‘profoundly concerned’ about the plans for tax cuts:
Jake Berry: mini Budget rebels would lose whip
Sophy Ridge spoke to the new Conservative party chairman Jake Berry, who said that he would expect to see any rebels punished for voting against the mini budget next week:
Mel Stride: I hope Liz Truss will contest the next election
And finally, the chairman of the Treasury select committee Mel Stride implied that Liz Truss only had a very short time left to stabilise the ship:
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