Tag: sunak

Categories
-Top News UK News

Why Rishi lost the race?

Several other MPs too switched sides. Meanwhile, Liz became stronger with her moves as the race progressed…reports Asian Lite News

Rishi Sunak had an advantage as he threw his hat early in the ring and was endorsed by four former chief whips, but within weeks, he started trailing behind the late-comer Liz Truss

Touted as the favourite initially for the race to Downing Street, Rishi Sunak started losing his spark midway. Sunak had a huge advantage as he threw his hat early in the ring and was endorsed by four former chief whips, but within weeks, he started trailing behind the late-comer Liz Truss in the UK prime ministerial race.

‘Ready for Rishi’

Hours after Boris Johnson announced his resignation, Sunak threw his hat into the ring with a campaign video titled ‘Ready for Rishi’. Even though it gave him the initial advantage, the act was a thorough mark of trust deficit in his boss and mentor.

Moreover, even as he gained massive support from his party at first, he started losing them including Sajid Javid, Nadhim Zahawi and then, finally, Mordaunt. Several other MPs too switched sides. Meanwhile, Liz became stronger with her moves as the race progressed.

Apart from that, even though Sunak became popularity shot up immediately after Johnson’s resignation, his image to be a backstabber was never forgotten.

Why did Sunak become unpopular?

Rishi Sunak’s image was permanently tainted when a video of his came into foray where he accepted that he took money from deprived urban areas. His comments, boasting of shifting money from “deprived urban areas” to fund projects in the Kent commuter belt sparked outrage, considering it cut across the UK government’s rhetoric about ‘levelling up’ Britain and spreading wealth beyond the south-east.

Things turned worse when reports claimed that his wife Akshata is wealthier than British Queen Elizabeth II with assets worth £430 million, according to Sunday Times Rich List. In fact, they were mentioned to be Westminster’s first billionaire couple, probably enjoying the largest fortune of any House of Commons family. Their finances came under scrutiny as Labour party called him to be more transparent regarding loans he took to fund his businesses.

The Guardian reported, Rishi was forced to explain details about how he managed his family’s fortune, which is said to total £730million. His fortune’s are derived from his marriage to Akshata Murthy, who owns a 0.93% stake worth £690m in Infosys.

Sunak comes in support of Truss

Hours after he lost the race, Sunak showed his support to Liz Truss. “It’s right we now unite behind the new PM, Liz Truss, as she steers the country through difficult times,” Sunak said on Twitter.

ALSO READ-No place for white men in Truss’ cabinet?

Categories
-Top News UK News

Liz Truss wins UK PM race

Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss rose to the Conservative ranks to end up as finalists for the contest for the post of UK Prime Minister…reports Asian Lite News

British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss has defeated former Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak in the Conservative leadership race and will now be the next Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.

Forty-seven-year-old Liz Truss will become the third female prime minister of the UK. She defeated Sunak through a postal ballot of all Conservative members.

The Tory leadership race was triggered after Boris Johnson was forced to step down on July 7 following a series of resignations of cabinet members, who protested against his scandal-plagued leadership.

Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss rose to the Conservative ranks to end up as finalists for the contest for the post of UK Prime Minister.

During nearly a dozen hustings and after a six-week long head-to-head competition, Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak had explained their long-term visions for Britain. Both contenders went through bouts of 12 nationwide events with the first bout in Leeds, Northern England.

Truss indicated that she will strongly push back against “identity politics of the left” as she has envisioned the legislation for single-sex spaces such as domestic violence shelters.  Sunak batted for cutting VAT to revive the country’s economic situation.

Liz Truss undertook a two-day trip to India in October last year. During her visit, she underscored the importance of partnership with India. Truss stressed that both countries should work together on the set plans for the future.

The Roadmap 2030 for India-UK future relations was launched during a virtual summit between the two countries in May last year. This Roadmap is for revitalised and dynamic connections between people, re-energised trade, investment and technological collaboration.

In another visit in March this year, Truss along with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar had expressed satisfaction with the progress achieved so far concerning Roadmap 2030 and agreed to further intensify efforts to deliver results in priority areas of trade and investments, defence, and migration.

Both sides appreciated the substantial progress made in the India-UK FTA negotiations with two productive rounds completed since its launch in January 2022. (ANI)

ALSO READ-Truss set to be next PM

Categories
-Top News UK News

UK to get new PM today

If Truss comes to power, she will be the third female Prime Minister of the UK after Margaret Thatcher (1979-1990) and Theresa May (2016-2019)…reports Asian Lite News

Boris Johnson’s successor as the next UK Prime Minister will be revealed on Monday when either Liz Truss, the incumbent Foreign Secretary, or Rishi Sunak, the former Indian-origin Chancellor, will be named as leader of the ruling Conservative Party.

The name will be announced at 12.30 p.m. (around 5 p.m. IST) and the winner of the leadership race will take office on Tuesday after being formally appointed by Queen Elizabeth II, reports the BBC.

If Truss comes to power, she will be the third female Prime Minister of the UK after Margaret Thatcher (1979-1990) and Theresa May (2016-2019).

If Sunak wins the race, he will make history as the first ever Indian-origin to hold the post and the the UK.

Tipped by pollsters to emerge as the winner, Truss has promised to announce further help to shield consumers within a week of taking over, says the BBC report.

She also plans to deliver 30 billion pounds in tax cuts through an emergency Budget later this month, arguing the UK’s tax burden is behind sluggish growth.

The Foreign Secretary is yet to offer details of her cost-of-living support plan beyond saying she will temporarily scrap green levies on energy bills and reverse the rise in National Insurance introduced during Johnson’s tenure.

While still hopeful, Sunak has signalled he believes he has lost, saying his job “now is just to support a Conservative government”.

The seven-week leadership contest will bring an end to Johnson’s turbulent three years in office, with Monday’s winner set to inherit a flagging economy, with inflation at a 40-year high, the BBC reported.

Johnson was forced out in July by a ministerial revolt over a string of scandals, just over two-and-a-half years after leading the Tories to a landslide victory at the 2019 election.

Although Sunak had the most support among Conservative MPs, he has trailed Truss in opinion polls of the party grassroots.

Johnson is expected to deliver a farewell speech upon leaving office on Tuesday, before the handover of power takes place.

ALSO READ-Sunak pledges to work night and day  

Categories
-Top News UK News

Sunak pledges to work night and day  

Sunak is looking to make history as Britain’s first Prime Minister of Indian-origin and has the overwhelming support of the Indian diaspora, many of whom have already voted in his favour as Conservative Party members…reports Asian Lite News

Rishi Sunak pledged to work “night and day” for the “best country in the world” as the election campaign to take over from Boris Johnson as the Conservative Party leader and the new British Prime Minister entered its final stage on Wednesday, with the very last hustings event set for London.

Sunak reiterated his vision statement as the first British Indian to run for the top job at 10 Downing Street ahead of the final campaign event scheduled at a popular concert venue in Wembley on Wednesday evening.

The former Chancellor will go head-to-head with his rival Foreign Secretary Liz Truss for one last time as they fight it out for any remaining Tory members yet to cast their ballots before voting closes on Friday evening.

The 42-year-old former finance minister, who has focussed his campaign message on the urgency of getting a grip on inflation and countered 47-year-old Truss’ claims that tax cuts are the answer to address the cost-of-living crisis crippling the UK economy, made a last-ditch effort to drive home his “consistent, clear and honest” vision.

“Britain is the best country in the world to grow up in, start a family and build a business, and our future looks bright. But we can only get there if we tackle the challenges we face in the short term head-on with honesty and a credible plan,” said Sunak, in a statement released by his Ready4Rishi campaign team on Tuesday night.

“I have the right plan, rooted in Conservative values, and I have been consistent, clear and honest throughout this contest that we must fix inflation first. Only by supporting people through this winter and gripping inflation can we lay the foundations for growth and prosperity for lower taxes, a better NHS and a healthy economy making full use of our Brexit freedoms,” he said.

“That’s my vision for Britain, and I’ll work night and day to deliver it for the party and country I love,” he added.

Sunak is looking to make history as Britain’s first Prime Minister of Indian-origin and has the overwhelming support of the Indian diaspora, many of whom have already voted in his favour as Conservative Party members.

After a dream run in the initial stages of the contest when his fellow members of Parliament voted resoundingly to elect him as one of two finalists, Sunak has been trailing in the surveys and bookie’s odds since the campaign widened to the Conservative Party membership across the country.

A fiercely loyal base of Johnson supporters who see Sunak as having triggered his early exit from Downing Street by resigning as the Chancellor in early July and Truss’ tax cutting pledge seem to be the dominating factors that have gone against the UK-born Indian-origin MP for Richmond in Yorkshire.

However, Sunak and his team have expressed optimism throughout the campaign and insisted that he would fight till the end for what he believes is the right vision for the country.

After a series of hustings events since last month, the voting in the leadership election will officially close at 1700 local time on Friday. By then, an estimated 160,000 Tory voters should have registered their ballots either by post or online.

“I am proud of the strong slate of candidates we’ve had for this contest, the most diverse range of candidates for any leadership election in British history, showing once again the Conservatives are the party of meritocracy,” said Conservative Party Chairman Andrew Stephenson, overseeing the election process.

The result of the ballot for a new Tory leader is set to be announced on Monday, with the winner going on to address his or her first Prime Minister’s Questions (PMQs) in the House of Commons next Wednesday.

ALSO READ-Sunak’s warning for Truss in PM race

Categories
-Top News UK News

Sunak camp accuses Truss of avoiding scrutiny

Robinson himself took to Twitter to say he was disappointed & frustrated at the cancellation…reports Asian Lite News

With just days to go before the polls close on Friday in the race to replace Boris Johnson as Conservative Party leader and British Prime Minister, former Chancellor Rishi Sunak’s camp accused rival Liz Truss of avoiding scrutiny on Tuesday.

Foreign Secretary Truss, who is the current frontrunner according to pre-poll surveys and bookie’s odds, was due to face tough questions from veteran BBC political journalist Nick Robinson in a one-on-one interview already done by Sunak earlier this month. But the Cabinet minister pulled out of the interview hours before it was to air on Tuesday evening, with her team saying she could no longer spare the time.

“Liz Truss has cancelled her BBC One interview with Nick Robinson which was due to air this Tuesday evening (30th August) at 7pm. Ms Truss’ team say she can no longer spare the time to appear on Our Next Prime Minister’, the BBC said in a statement.

“The other candidate for the Conservative leadership, Rishi Sunak, was interviewed by Nick on 10th August. We regret that it has not been possible to do an in depth interview with both candidates despite having reached agreement to do so,” it notes.

Robinson himself took to Twitter to say he was disappointed & frustrated at the cancellation.

It’s important that candidates face proper scrutiny so that [party] members and the public know what they are offering, an unnamed ally of Rishi Sunak was quoted by The Times’ as saying.

“Avoiding that scrutiny suggests either Truss doesn’t have a plan at all or the plan she has falls far short of the challenges we face this winter, the ally said.

The newspaper notes that this is the second time that the Foreign Secretary has avoided an interview with a veteran broadcaster, after she refused to speak to Andrew Neil for a Channel 4 television show earlier in the contest. When the broadcaster recorded a 30-minute interview with the British Indian former finance minister, he concluded the show with a challenge to Truss to follow Sunak.

The Opposition also criticised Truss backing out of Tuesday’s BBC interview, which comes just before the deadline for Tory members to register their online or postal ballots in the leadership contest by Friday evening.

“The British public don’t get a say in choosing the next Tory Prime Minister and now it seems Liz Truss wants to avoid any public scrutiny whatsoever, said Labour Party shadow minister Conor McGinn.

People will rightly conclude that she doesn’t want to answer questions about her plans for the country because she simply hasn’t got any serious answers to the big challenges facing our country, he said.

The Liberal Democrats declared the Foreign Secretary was running scared.

“Liz Truss is running scared of the media and proper public scrutiny. How can she lead our country through an economic crisis when she can’t even cope with a basic media interview, questioned Wendy Chamberlain, a senior party MP and chief whip.

She wants to follow in (former British Prime Minister) Margaret Thatcher’s footsteps but she’s fallen at the first hurdle. She’s fighting for the highest office by answering the lowest number of difficult questions, she said.

However, analysts believe it is a strategy to prevent rocking the boat while ahead in the polls a similar tactic used by outgoing Prime Minister Johnson who refused an interview with Andrew Neil during the 2019 General Election and went on to secure a landslide majority for the Conservative Party.

Meanwhile, both candidates will face their final hustings event in London on Wednesday evening in an attempt to convince any remaining undecided Conservative Party members who are yet to cast their votes in the election. The winner between Sunak and Truss will be declared on Monday, to be followed by an audience with Queen Elizabeth II for a formal swearing in.

ALSO READ-Sunak’s warning for Truss in PM race

Categories
-Top News

Sunak’s warning for Truss in PM race

Sunak, the former Chancellor of the Exchequer, told the paper he feared that unfunded spending commitments would lead to spiraling debt, rising inflation, interest rates and borrowing costs…reports Asian Lite News

Rishi Sunak, the underdog in the Conservative leadership race, has warned that the next prime minister faces the risk of markets losing confidence in Britain’s economy.

Sunak’s opponent, Liz Truss, who is widely expected to win the race to No. 10 next Monday, has said she would swiftly implement a series of tax cuts, as well as some as yet undefined support for households, at an emergency fiscal event in mid-September.

But in an interview with the Financial Times published Tuesday night, Sunak said he “struggled to see” how Truss’s tax and spending commitments “add up,” warning it would be “complacent and irresponsible” for the next prime minister “not to be thinking about the risks to the public finances.”

Sunak, the former Chancellor of the Exchequer, told the paper he feared that unfunded spending commitments would lead to spiraling debt, rising inflation, interest rates and borrowing costs.

Urging Truss to stick to fiscal rules that would see debt falling as a share of GDP within three years, Sunak said: “Ultimately, you have to decide whether you think sustainable rate of borrowing are important or not. I think they are.”

He added: “We have more inflation-linked debt by a margin than any other G7 economy — basically more than double. Because of the structure of QE [quantitative easing], we’re also particularly much more sensitive to an upward rate cycle than we have been.”

Sunak also told the FT that the Bank of England did not need a new mandate, and defended his demand for “call in” powers for ministers over City regulators.

ALSO READ-Truss, Sunak’s campaign highlights differing approaches

Categories
-Top News UK News

Truss, Sunak’s campaign highlights differing approaches

Foreign Secretary Truss has in contrast emerged as a favourite in the vote of grassroots Tory members, the result of which will be announced next Monday…reports Asian Lite News

Liz Truss will become Britain’s third female prime minister if she wins the Conservative leadership election, while rival Rishi Sunak hopes to be the first non-white incumbent in Downing Street.

The campaign, sparked by Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s resignation in July, has highlighted the pair’s differing approaches to tackling the country’s spiralling cost of living crisis.

Sunak, whose resignation as finance minister over a series of government scandals helped to spark the leadership contest, is considered a better public speaker.

But he has come under fire for clinging to fiscal orthodoxy to tackle runaway inflation and has been hamstrung by his image as a wealthy technocrat.

At the same time, he has faced accusations of treachery for bringing down the Tories’ Brexit hero Johnson.

Foreign Secretary Truss has in contrast emerged as a favourite in the vote of grassroots Tory members, the result of which will be announced next Monday

“She’s a better politician,” said John Curtice, a political scientist at the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow.

“If you ask me what Liz Truss’s campaign was about I will immediately say to you: ‘a tax cut not a handout’. Very clear,” he said.

“There is no strapline for Sunak, nothing.”

For Curtice, Truss has effectively conveyed “traditional Conservative messages” to Tory members while Sunak has been more nuanced.

“It’s also a bit of a lecture,” he said, assessing that Sunak has come across as “a wee bit brittle” under pressure.

“You can see that she’s been in the game for longer,” he added.

Political journey

Truss, 47, has described her ascent towards the top of British politics as a “journey” that has seen her criticised for being ambitiously opportunistic.

She comes from a left-wing family and initially joined the centrist Liberal Democrats before jumping ship to the right-wing Conservatives.

She became MP for the South West Norfolk constituency in eastern England in 2010, surviving revelations of an affair that almost cost her the nomination.

Since 2012 she has held a series of ministerial posts in the education, finance and departments as well as a difficult spell in justice.

In 2016, she campaigned for the UK to remain in the European Union but quickly became one of its strongest supporters when Britons voted for Brexit.

When the UK left the EU, Johnson put her in charge of negotiating new free trade deals before appointing her as foreign secretary last year.

In the role, she took on the controversial task of trying to overhaul differences with Brussels about post-Brexit trade in Northern Ireland.

Like Johnson, she has talked tough on Russia and given unswerving backing for Ukraine.

Truss’s dress sense and photo opportunities — posing in a tank in Estonia and wearing a fur hat in Moscow — have earned her comparisons to Tory icon Margaret Thatcher.

Her sometimes stiff style has become visibly more relaxed and allies have sought to soften her image, revealing her love of karaoke and socialising.

Establishment elite?

“For a party that’s gone in quite a populist direction in recent years, she’s been able to present herself as more authentic, more ordinary than Rishi Sunak, who is all too easily presented as part of the global elite,” said Tim Bale, from Queen Mary University of London.

“Like Boris Johnson, she is keen on the idea that there is some kind of elite that has to be countered and she sets herself up as being outside the establishment, despite having been in government for eight years.”

Sunak, 42, the grandson of Indian immigrants, grew up as the son of a doctor and a pharmacist in Southampton, on England’s south coast.

He attended the prestigious fee-paying Winchester College school, then Oxford University.

Truss, who went to a state school in Leeds, northern England, also studied at Oxford. Both studied politics, philosophy and economics.

Sunak met his wife, Akshata Murty, whose father founded the Indian tech giant Infosys, at US university Stanford before jobs at Goldman Sachs and investment funds.

He has represented the constituency of Richmond in northern England since 2015, where he was soon marked out as a potential future prime minister.

He became finance minister in early 2020, quickly winning plaudits for spearheading government support to people and businesses affected by the coronavirus pandemic.

But Sunak, a self-confessed geek with a love of Star Wars, saw opinion turn against him this year, after it emerged that his wife did not pay UK tax.

Critics have also used his private wealth, expensive clothes and houses to portray him as out of touch with the ordinary public.

ALSO READ-Sunak attempts to catch up with Truss at Birmingham  

Categories
-Top News UK News

Sunak attempts to catch up with Truss at Birmingham  

A recent survey of Tory voters said Truss has consolidated her lead over former chancellor Rishi Sunak in the race to become the Prime Minister and leader of the Conservative Party…reports Asian Lite News

As the result of the Prime Minister race nears, Rishi Sunak made his last bit of efforts to salvage the contest for the Conservative party leadership that most surveys favour Liz Truss to win.

During the 10th round of hustings in Birmingham, Sunak pitched values like patriotism, family, hard work and service to build a better Britain. “We need to do three things. First, we need to build trust. We need to rebuild our economy and then reunite our country,” he said.

Speaking to the Tory members on the economy, the former British chancellor said that he will reform the publicly funded healthcare system in England to prevent constantly throwing more money.

Rishi Sunak, who claims to have chosen an honest way, said, “I have not chosen to say what people want to hear but I have said things that I believe the country needs to hear.”

With the final results due in the first week of September, several surveys indicate that Sunak is bound to lose to Foreign Secretary Liz Truss in the Conservative party leadership race.

The result of the vote to decide who will replace Boris Johnson as the next British Prime Minister is due on September 5.

A recent survey of Tory voters said Truss has consolidated her lead over former chancellor Rishi Sunak in the race to become the Prime Minister and leader of the Conservative Party.

The latest Conservative Home survey released last Wednesday has produced much the same result as it did when it was last published earlier this month.

“Then, Rishi Sunak was on 26 per cent, Liz Truss was on 58 per cent and 12 per cent were undecided. Now, those figures are 28 per cent, 60 per cent and nine per cent. We have rolled Neither and Won’t Vote into the same column this time round,” said the Conservative Home survey of 961 party members, who either already have or will be casting their ballots in the leadership race.

Once members who fall under the “don’t know” category are equally distributed between the two contenders, Truss maintains a 32-point lead over the former Minister Sunak.

“If our don’t knows are divided evenly between the two candidates, an exercise we carried out last time, Truss goes up to 64 per cent and Sunak to 32 per cent – and so maintains the 32 point lead she had last time round. YouGov’s last poll, which closed on August 2nd, the day our last survey went out, gave her a 38-point lead. Opinium’s latest poll, conducted last week, gave her a 22-point lead,” the survey added.

The sum of Opinium, YouGov and Conservative Home surveys is that Truss is set to win by a margin roughly between 70-30 and 60-40 – perhaps a bit higher, perhaps a bit lower.

ALSO READ-Sunak signals he wouldn’t serve in Truss govt

Categories
-Top News UK News

Sunak signals he wouldn’t serve in Truss govt

On China, the former minister reiterated his stand about the need to be “very robust” in defending the UK against its aggressiveness…reports Asian Lite News

Rishi Sunak indicated he would not serve in a government run by his Conservative rival Liz Truss if she becomes prime minister next month.

“One thing I have reflected on quite a bit being in government, in cabinet the last few years — you really need to agree with the big things,” the former chancellor, who is expected to lose the Tory party leadership contest, told BBC Radio 2 on Monday. “Because it’s tough, as I found out, when you don’t and I wouldn’t want to end up in a situation like that again.”

Sunak, whose shock resignation last month ultimately led to Boris Johnson’s downfall as premier, and Truss are at odds with each other over their plans on the economy. Sunak has been suggested in UK newspapers as a potential health secretary under Truss.

“I am not focused on all of that, and I doubt Liz is,” he said when asked about the reports. “I am not thinking about jobs for me or anyone else.”

Sunak explains change he plans in ties with India

Sunak said he wants to change the UK-India relationship to make it a more two-way exchange that opens up easy access to UK students and companies in India.

During a campaign hustings event hosted by the Conservative Friends of India (CFIN) diaspora organisation in north London on Monday evening, the former Chancellor greeted the largely British Indian gathering with a mix of traditional greetings such as “namaste, salaam, khem cho, and kidda”.

He even broke into Hindi: “Aap sab mere parivar ho (you all are my family).” “We know the UK-India relationship is important. We represent the living bridge between our two countries,” he said, in response to a question about bilateral ties from CFIN co-chair Reena Ranger.

“We are all very aware of the opportunity for the UK to sell things and do things in India, but actually we need to look at that relationship differently because there is an enormous amount that we here in the UK can learn from India,” he said.

“I want to make sure that it’s easy for our students to also travel to India and learn, that it’s also easy for our companies and Indian companies to work together because it’s not just a one-way relationship, it’s a two-way relationship, and that’s the type of change I want to bring to that relationship,” he said.

On China, the former minister reiterated his stand about the need to be “very robust” in defending the UK against its aggressiveness.

“China and the Chinese Communist Party represent the biggest threat to our economic and thereby national security that this country has faced in a long time and we need to be alive to that,” he said.

“Be in no doubt, as your Prime Minister I will do whatever it takes to keep you, your families and our country safe because that’s the first duty of a Conservative Prime Minister,” he added.

After a grand entry at the Dhamecha Lohana Centre in Harrow to dhol beats and loud cheers, the former minister spoke briefly and then spent hours interacting with hundreds of Tory members who queued up to shake hands with him.

He was showered with blessings by the elderly in the crowd, patted on the back by others and eight-year-old Tanish Sahu got a special picture as Mr Sunak carried him in his arms.

Amita Mishra, the Trustee of Shree Jagannatha Society UK, handed over a set of gold-plated deities all the way from India.

“We are working on creating a Jagannath Temple in London and this gift is a special blessing all the way from India,” said Mishra, who was accompanied by a pandit who performed a victory shloka from the ‘Bhagavad Gita’ as the deities were handed over to Mr Sunak on stage.

In complete contrast, a British Sikh Tory member in the crowd waited hours to get a special bottle of Jack Daniels whisky signed by Mr Sunak – despite both him and the former Chancellor being teetotalers.

“I don’t drink but this is a special gift I received on my birthday and now with this signature it has become historic,” he said.

ALSO READ-Truss downplays prospect of recession

Categories
UK News

Sunak may head to US if he loses PM race

Research by YouGov found Truss is backed by 66 per cent of party members, who are deciding the successor to Boris Johnson…reports Asian Lite News

Speculation is mounting about Rishi Sunak’s future as another poll showed Liz Truss with an unassailable lead among Tory members in the race for UK Prime Minister, the media reported.

Some MPs are predicting that the former chancellor will opt to leave the Parliament if he loses the battle for Prime Minister, although allies insist he is ‘not going anywhere’, Daily Mail reported.

Senior Conservatives believe Sunak has ‘burned his boats’ during the contest, due to come to a conclusion on September 5, and is unlikely to be offered a job he could accept, the report said.

Research by YouGov found Truss is backed by 66 per cent of party members, who are deciding the successor to Boris Johnson.

Sunak only has support from 34 per cent, excluding those who are not sure. Although the 32-point advantage is slightly smaller than was found a fortnight ago, just 13 per cent are now undecided and nearly six in 10 have already voted.

The survey also found widespread regret that Boris Johnson is going — with 55 per cent saying it was wrong to force him to quit.

One former minister said the tone from the Sunak campaign had been ‘a lot more personal’ recently, and there was no chance of him serving in a Truss government.

“I think he is finished from that perspective. I can see Cabinet positions being given to Suella (Braverman) and Kemi (Badenoch), but not Rishi (Sunak). I think he’s gone and burned his boats.

‘He’s got plenty of opportunities should he be inclined to look elsewhere for gainful employment. I should have thought that is what he will do.’

They pointed out that Sunak has long-standing links to the US and Silicon Valley, having held a coveted green card, Daily Mail reported.

Another senior MP said Sunak could look for a career elsewhere, saying: ‘He’s got huge options.’

ALSO READ-Truss leads Sunak by 32 points