United Kingdom. No10 Downing Street are flying the flag of St George in support of the England Women's Football Team after reaching the final of the Euro 2022 tournament. 10 Downing Street. Picture by Kyle Heller / No 10 Downing Street
The players asked the two candidates to pledge to ensure that all girls have access to at least two hours of PE sessions each week, where football is offered…reports Asian Lite News
England’s Euro 2022 winning footballers on Wednesday urged the two candidates vying to become the UK’s next prime minister to ensure that all girls have access to the sport at school.
All 23 members of the squad, which beat Germany 2-1 in Sunday’s final at a sold-out Wembley Stadium, signed an open letter to Conservative Party leadership candidates Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss, calling on their help to “create real change in this country.”
“Currently only 63 percent of girls can play football in PE (physical education) lessons. The reality is we are inspiring young girls to play football, only for many to end up going to school and not being able to play,” they wrote.
“This is something that we all experienced growing up.”
The players asked the two candidates to pledge to ensure that all girls have access to at least two hours of PE sessions each week, where football is offered.
“We have made incredible strides in the women’s game, but this generation of schoolgirls deserves more,” they wrote.
“They deserve to play football at lunchtime, they deserve to play football in PE lessons and they deserve to believe they can one day play for England.
“We want to create real change in this country and we are asking you, if you were to become Prime Minister on 5 September, to help us achieve that change.”
#NSTsports#England's #Euro2022 winning footballers on Wednesday urged the two candidates vying to become the #UK's next prime minister to ensure that all girls have access to the sport at school.https://t.co/YWftqwgKtY
Both candidates responded to the Lionesses’ call, without making any firm commitment on schoolgirls being able to play football.
Truss’s campaign responded by saying the candidate “is committed to investigating what prevents schools from delivering the recommended minimum of two hours PE per week.”
Sunak’s spokesman said he “would love to see all schools provide two hours of PE a week.”
The winner of the party leadership contest will inherit a parliamentary majority and therefore become prime minister…reports Asian Lite News
Former finance minister Rishi Sunak said it was still “early days” in the leadership contest to replace Prime Minister Boris Johnson, a day after an opinion poll showed him trailing rival Liz Truss by 34 points.
The ruling Conservative Party is choosing a new leader after Johnson was forced to announce his resignation when ministers resigned en masse from his government citing a series of scandals and missteps over the last 12 months.
Sunak, whose resignation helped trigger Johnson’s downfall, and Foreign Secretary Truss are the two remaining candidates in the contest. The party’s members will vote by postal ballot over the next few weeks with a winner announced on Sept. 5.
“It’s still early days and I’m looking forward to meeting many more of you in the coming weeks,” Sunak said in a tweet ahead of campaigning among members of the ruling Conservative Party later on Wednesday.
The winner of the party leadership contest will inherit a parliamentary majority and therefore become prime minister.
On Tuesday an opinion poll showed Foreign Secretary Truss held a 34 point lead over Sunak among Conservative Party members, with 86% telling pollster YouGov they had decided how they would vote.
Truss suffered the first major misstep of her campaign on Tuesday when she was forced to backtrack on one of her most striking pledges a day after announcing it following a backlash from fellow Conservatives and opposition parties.
Truss had set out plans to save billions of pounds a year in government spending in a pledge opponents said would require cutting the pay of public sector workers, including nurses and teachers, outside of the wealthy southeast of England.
What a week, and it's only Wednesday!
Straight from the Exeter Hustings I hit the road again meeting members in Totnes, Plympton and North Cornwall.
It's still early days and I'm looking forward to meeting many more of you in the coming weeks.
Sunak has struggled in the race, partly due to his role in Johnson’s resignation and over his record in government.
As finance minister, Sunak implemented tax increases to pay for government support offered during the COVID-19 pandemic and to help Britons subsidise soaring energy bills. That has drawn criticism from many activists in the historically low-tax party.
Sunak has pledged to cut taxes over time to avoid stoking inflation, but Truss has said she would act immediately to lower the tax burden.
Nadine Dorries at Birmingham for the Commonwealth Games (Picture Credits: https://twitter.com/NadineDorries)
Truss has been leading in the opinion polls and bookmaker’s odds as the favoured candidate to succeed Boris Johnson…reports Asian Lite News
One of outgoing British Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s key loyalists and supporter of Foreign Secretary Liz Truss as his successor, who has been very vocal in attacks against Rishi Sunak, was on Sunday facing criticism for retweeting a “dangerous and distasteful” image of the former Chancellor.
Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries re-posted a tweet on her social media account showing an image of Johnson dressed as Roman leader Julius Caesar and Sunak stabbing him in the back, a reference to his killer Brutus.
Business Minister Greg Hands, who is backing the British Indian ex-minister in the race, told ‘Sky News’ the post was “appalling”.
One of outgoing British PM Boris Johnson's key loyalists and supporter of Foreign Secretary & UK PM candidate Liz Truss as his successor, has drawn criticism for her post against Rishi Sunak pic.twitter.com/psry8F3boK
“I do find it distasteful and I do find it, less than a year after the stabbing of our colleague, in very, very poor taste, even verging on dangerous,” he said.
Referring to the stabbing to death of Tory MP Sir David Amess by a constituent last year, he added: “It is not even a year since the stabbing of Sir David… so I think this is very, very bad taste, dangerous even,” But an unnamed ally of Dorries pointed out that it was “obviously a satirical image of Brutus and Caesar”, photoshopped to provide political commentary.
“Some people of course will want to be wilfully offended,” the ally said.
Dorries has previously attacked Sunak’s expensive dress sense as a sign of not being in touch with the British electorate and accused him of leading a “ruthless coup” against his former boss.
“I am bitterly disappointed that Boris Johnson was removed via a ruthless coup, as he was, led largely by Rishi Sunak,” she has said.
It comes as a report in the ‘Observer’ newspaper claims Sunak’s team is being urged to overhaul his “general election-style” campaign in favour of a grassroots effort, speaking directly to the estimated 180,000 Tory members in a last-ditch attempt to beat Liz Truss to the Conservative leadership.
Truss has been leading in the opinion polls and bookmaker’s odds as the favoured candidate to succeed Boris Johnson.
“The vote is very soft, you don’t have to do much to move it. We’re making this far too complicated. There’s brilliant people in charge, but I’m just worried we’re fighting the wrong campaign,” one Sunak supporting Tory MP told the newspaper.
Another MP said: “The stuff they have their guys producing is social media stuff for a general election. This is about party members. It should just be about getting Rishi and key supporters to as many members as possible. They are trying to get MPs out for them, but it’s mainly producing social media graphics.”
A third ally said: “I do think it’s looking quite difficult for him but I can’t give up hope yet. There are a lot of MPs talking to their associations. There’s still time. It would be preposterous to just go through the motions for the next four weeks.” The postal ballots for the election will start landing at Tory members’ addresses from next Thursday, with the deadline for receiving completed ballots set as the evening of September 2. The result will be declared on September 5.
Sunak said the plan would mark the biggest income tax cut since the time of Margaret Thatcher…reports Asian Lite News
Rishi Sunak, trailing in the race to become Britain’s next prime minister, has vowed to slash the basic rate of income tax by 20 per cent by 2029 in a potentially make-or-break throw of the dice by the former finance minister.
Sunak, once seen as the favourite to replace Boris Johnson when he helped to steer the economy through the ravages of the Covid-19 pandemic, has struggled against his rival, Foreign Secretary Liz Truss, who has pledged immediate tax cuts.
The bruising race between Sunak and Truss to become Britain’s next prime minister stepped up a gear on Monday (Aug 1) with the mailing out of ballots to Conservative party members.
As Conservatives, we all want taxes to be low.
But we need to cut taxes in a responsible way which doesn’t stoke inflation and put prices up even higher for families.
Sunak said he remained focused on tackling inflation but once that was achieved he would follow through on an already-announced plan to take 1 pence (S$16.90) off income tax in 2024, and then take a further 3 pence off by the end of the next parliament, likely around 2029.
The two pledges would take income tax from 20p to 16p.
Sunak said the plan would mark the biggest income tax cut since the time of Margaret Thatcher.
“It is a radical vision but it is also a realistic one,” he said in a statement on Sunday (July 31).
Britain’s hunt for a new prime minister was triggered on July 7 when Johnson was forced to announce his resignation following months of scandal. Conservative lawmakers have whittled a field of candidates down to Truss and Sunak, with an announcement of the decision by party members due on Sept. 5.
With inflation surging to a 40-year high of 9.4 per cent and growth stalling, the economy dominated early stages of the contest.
Sunak, who steered the UK economy through the pandemic, said Truss’ plans were “fantasy economics” that would fuel inflation and heap further strain on public finances struggling to recover from the pandemic.
Sunak said each penny cut from the rate of income tax would cost around 6 billion pounds (S$10.1 billion) a year, a figure that he said would still allow Britain’s debt-to-GDP ratio to fall, if the economy grows in line with official forecasts.
Truss has argued that tax cuts are needed now to give the economy a shot in the arm. A recent poll by YouGov showed Truss held a 24-point lead over Sunak among Conservative Party members.
Trailing in polls with the all-important party members, Sunak last week performed a significant U-turn by announcing a plan to scrap VAT on energy bills.
Today I announced my radical tax vision including the largest cut to income tax in thirty years.
⚫I will never cut taxes in a way that puts inflation up. ⚫I will never make promises I can’t pay for. ⚫I will be honest about the challenges we face.https://t.co/3cXn1rFhcapic.twitter.com/hCdOZy676g
He also promised grassroot Tories over the weekend that he would stop “woke nonsense” and “end the brainwashing” if he becomes prime minister, although added he has “zero interest in fighting a so-called culture war”.
The 42-year-old also unveiled plans to revive the country’s ailing town centres.
“I want to slash the number of empty shops by 2025 and make sure that they are turned into thriving local assets,” he said.
“I will also crack down on anti-social behaviour, graffiti and littering – through extended police powers and increased fines.”
Sunak was trailing 62% to 38% in YouGov’s poll of Conservative members, who will begin voting next week and will have time up to September 2 next to do so, reportsAshis Ray…reports Asian Lite News
Liz Truss, the incumbent caretaker Foreign Secretary in deposed UK Prime Minister Boris Johnsons government, beat her rival Rishi Sunak, the Indian-origin former Chancellor, according to a survey of ruling Conservative party members, the electoral college to choose the winner.
Forty-seven per cent of respondents to pollster Opinium sounding them out felt Truss performed better versus 38 per cent who thought likewise about Sunak.
However, Sunak marginally defeated Truss, again according to Opinium, in a poll of regular voters who watched the debate. Thirty-nine per cent said Sunak won, while 38 per cent stated Truss did.
The debate held at Stoke-on-Trent, a town in the west midlands of England, was hot-tempered and combative in which Sunak was noticeably aggressive, often talking over his opponent.
Sunak was trailing 62 per cent to 38 per cent in YouGov’s poll of Conservative members, who will begin voting next week and will have time up to September 2 next to do so. It would appear he did not make up sufficient ground with this constituency as yet to turn the tables on Truss.
Clearly, Sunak’s strategy was to attack. Several viewers interviewed after the debate thought his constant interruptions were ‘rude’ and they sounded as if they were displeased by such behaviour. It was certainly un-British tactics.
The two contenders clashed on tax cuts — Sunak sticking to doing so later, Truss promising it will be as soon as she comes prime minister.
On British policy towards China, both agreed this should be tough. Sunak said Truss was on a ‘journey’ when it came to China, alleging she had previously argued in favour of a ‘golden age’ in the UK’s relations with the country. Ultimately, they concurred on a clampdown on companies like TikTok.
Regarding loyalty to Johnson, Sunak resigned as chancellor of the exchequer thereby precipitating Johnson’s end, while Truss remained as a caretaker foreign secretary. Both attempted to justify their opposite stances.
The debate took place against the background of the London Metropolitan Police, which fined Johnson for partying during the Covid pandemic in violation of prevalent laws, not apparently sending a questionnaire on the matter to the Prime Minister.
In effect, it did not investigate him as thoroughly as it ought to have.
On Monday, the Met, popularly known as Scotland Yard, effectively admitted in court that it had not fully probed Johnson.
The Good Law Project, a non-profit campaign group which petitioned a judicial review of the case, said: “We don’t think the Met’s response is consistent with their legal duty of candour.”
Johnson’s troubles escalated with media scoops making public last December that socialising had taken place rampantly at his office-cum-residence during the Covid lockdown.
He seems to be backing Truss rather than Sunak in the race to replace him.
Earlier, the YouGov survey also revealed that Truss extends its lead over Rishi Sunak as she gained 24-points.
Now, the two had finally announced and their summer campaign began, a new YouGov poll of Tory members suggests that Truss retains her strong advantage.
According to the survey, 31 per cent of the members intends to vote for Rishi Sunak, while 49 per cent intend to vote for Liz Truss. A further 15 per cent currently don’t know how they will vote, and 6 per cent currently tell us they will abstain.
This puts the headline voting intention at 62 per cent for Truss and 38 per cent for Sunak (i.e. after people who are currently unsure or won’t vote are excluded) – a 24-point lead for the foreign secretary.
The Tory leadership race was triggered after Johnson was forced to step down on July 7 amid an avalanche of resignations of government officials, who protested against his scandal-plagued leadership. Johnson will continue to serve as caretaker prime minister until a new Tory leader succeeds him.
Sunak said as chancellor he boosted support for victims to record levels — quadruple those under Labour — and a ground-breaking new approach to policing which is helping drive up prosecutions of sex offenders…reports Asian Lite News
Rishi Sunak has vowed to hunt down and stamp out grooming gangs who prey on children and young women, and make their ringleaders subject to maximum life sentences as part of his campaign pledge to be elected Conservative Party leader and the next British Prime Minister.
Under a government headed by him, the Ready4Rishi campaign team said on Wednesday evening that members of grooming rings will automatically face criminal charges for belonging to or facilitating the activity of the gang, with those at its heart facing life sentences.
In a further crackdown on sex offenders, the former chancellor will ban so-called “down-blousing”, where perpetrators take photos down a woman’s top without their consent to curb abuse targeted at women and bring more offenders to justice.
“Sexual violence against women and girls should be treated as a national emergency until it has been defeated. As a father of two girls, I want them to be able to go for a walk in the evening or to a shop at night without any fear of threat,” said Sunak, father to schoolgirls Anoushka and Krishna.
Sunak said as chancellor he boosted support for victims to record levels — quadruple those under Labour — and a ground-breaking new approach to policing which is helping drive up prosecutions of sex offenders.
“As the Prime Minister I will go further. I will make it a criminal offence if you harass women by taking intimate images of them without their consent and will introduce a major crackdown on grooming gangs,” he said.
“We cannot let sensitivities over race stop us from catching dangerous criminals who prey on women and I will not stop until we live in a society where women and girls can go about their daily lives feeling safe and secure,” he said.
The British Indian former Finance Minister, who is married to Akshata Murty – the daughter of Infosys co-founder Narayana Murthy, said he would set up a new emergency taskforce working at the heart of the U.K.’s National Crime Agency (NCA) to launch an investigation into any town or city where significant grooming gang activity has been found and root it out.
The former chancellor announced a major crackdown on sex offenders to protect women and girls https://t.co/0S2c4azmdf
If elected to succeed Boris Johnson as the Prime Minister, Sunak promises to force suspects to explain why they have the phone numbers or contact details of children. They will also have to reveal their ethnicity or nationality for the purposes of crime prevention.
He also plans to launch a National Grooming Gangs Whistleblower Network to gather intelligence on gangs and create a dedicated database to help the police monitor suspects.
Besides, the focus will be on boosting training for frontline police to help them identify victims of grooming gangs and remind officers to serve without fear or favour, including the fear of being accused of racism.
“Rishi will give the Justice Secretary a final say over parole decisions for dangerous criminals. His government will personally review and consider denying parole for any gang member convicted of rape who still posed a risk after serving their sentence,” reads his campaign statement.
“He will pass the Bill of Rights to help prevent any foreign perpetrators using the Human Rights Act to frustrate their deportation orders,” it said.
The former frontline Cabinet Minister said he would build on the support for victims he funded as Chancellor — 192 million pounds a year by 2024-25, including funding 1,000 sexual violence advisers — by extending mental health support for rape victims to be available to them for life.
He will also ensure all survivors of sexual violence have access to same-sex spaces, his campaign said.
Boris Johnson told former treasurer Peter Cruddas that he “does not want to resign” as UK prime minister and wishes he could “wipe away” his departure…reports Asian Lite News
Boris Johnson told former treasurer Peter Cruddas that he “does not want to resign” as UK prime minister and wishes he could “wipe away” his departure, The Telegraph reported on Monday.
Johnson also told Cruddas over lunch on Friday that he “wants to fight the next general election as leader of the Conservative Party,” the report said.
“There was no ambiguity in Boris’s views. He definitely does not want to resign. He wants to carry on and he believes that, with the membership behind him, he can,” the report quoting Cruddas as saying.
Lord Cruddas told the Telegraph: “There was no ambiguity in Boris’s views. He definitely does not want to resign. He wants to carry on and he believes that, with the membership behind him, he can.”
The peer added: “Boris thanked me for my ‘Boris on the ballot’ campaign. He said he was enjoying following it and he wished me well. He said he could understand the membership’s anger at what had happened.
“He said that he wished that he could carry on as Prime Minister. He said he does not want to resign.”
The paper said Johnson, when asked by the peer if he would “wipe away” his resignation immediately with “a magic wand”, reportedly replied: “I would wipe away everything that stops me being PM in a second.”
Lord Cruddas, who said 10,000 party members have backed the campaign, added: “He wants to carry on to finish the job. He wants to fight the next general election as leader of the Conservative Party.”
However, No. 10 said: “The Prime Minister has resigned as party leader and set out his intention to stand down as PM when the new leader is in place.”
In his final appearance at Prime Minister’s Questions, Johnson said “mission largely accomplished, for now” before signing-off by telling MPs: “Hasta la vista, baby.”
The Spanish term “hasta la vista” translates to “see you later”, but “hasta la vista, baby” is the catchphrase of Arnold Schwarzenegger’s cyborg character in the 1991 movie Terminator 2: Judgment Day.
Johnson’s comments left the door open for a possible comeback, with the Terminator also known for the catchphrase: “I’ll be back.”
Truss, Sunak spar over tax in TV debate
The two candidates vying to be Britain’s next prime minister sparred Monday over how to help families struggling with the soaring cost of living, meeting in a testy televised debate that highlighted the contrasting economic visions of the Conservative Party rivals.
Foreign Secretary Liz Truss promised to cut taxes as soon as she took office, using borrowing to pay for it. Former Treasury chief Rishi Sunak said he would get inflation under control first, arguing that Truss’s plan would increase the public debt and leave people worse off in the long run.
Tempers flared as Sunak said that “it’s not moral to ask our children to pick up the tab for the bills that we’re not prepared to pay.” Truss called that “Project Fear” and said it was sensible to borrow to rebuild from the coronavirus pandemic, a “once in a 100-year event.”
The pair are battling to succeed Boris Johnson, who quit as leader of the governing Conservative Party on July 7 after months of ethics scandals triggered a mass exodus of ministers from his government. The contest has exposed deep divisions within the party as it tries to move on from the tarnished, but election-winning Johnson.
Oddsmakers say Truss is the favorite to win. She outperforms Sunak in polls of Conservative members — though Sunak has the edge among voters as a whole.
The winner will be chosen by about 180,000 Conservative Party members and will automatically become prime minister, governing a country of 67 million. Party members will vote over the summer, with the result announced Sept. 5. Johnson remains caretaker prime minister until his successor is chosen.
Truss, 46, and Sunak, 42, have wooed Conservatives by doubling down on policies thought to appeal to the right-wing Tory grassroots, including a controversial plan to deport some asylum-seekers to Rwanda.
The government says the policy will deter people-traffickers from sending migrants on hazardous journeys across the Channel. Political opponents, human rights organizations and even a few Conservative lawmakers say it is immoral, illegal and a waste of taxpayers’ money.
The first scheduled deportation flight was grounded after legal rulings last month, and the whole policy is now being challenged in the British courts.
Hard-line policies like the Rwanda plan are less popular with voters as a whole than with Conservatives, but the British electorate won’t get a say on the government until the next national election, due by the end of 2024.
The leadership election is taking place during a cost-of-living crisis driven by soaring food and energy prices, partly due to the war in Ukraine. While many countries are experiencing economic turbulence, in Britain it’s compounded by the country’s departure from the European Union, which has complicated travel and business relations with the U.K.’s biggest trading partner.
Both Sunak and Truss are strong supporters of Brexit, which was the signature policy of the Johnson government. Both denied Brexit was responsible for huge queues of vehicles waiting to cross to France at the port of Dover in recent days.
Sunak is running as the candidate of fiscal probity, while Truss has positioned herself as a disruptor who will “challenge orthodoxy” and “get things done.”
The two sparred on topics such as policy toward China, with Truss accusing Sunak of changing his stance on relations with Beijing.
Sunak says that China represents the “biggest-long term threat to Britain” and that if elected he would close the 30 Confucius Institutes in Britain. Funded by the Chinese government, the institutes teach Chinese language and culture, but have been accused of spreading pro-Beijing propaganda.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson visits Ukrainian troops. Prime Minister Boris Johnson visits Ukrainian troops being trained by British Armed Forces in North Yorkshire. Picture by Andrew Parsons / No 10 Downing Street
This means running on campaign issues that the candidates believe are most likely to appeal to this very small and hardly diverse group of people…reports Asian Lite News
The next Prime Minister of the United Kingdom will inherit a mess that some members of the governing Conservative Party believe will be impossible to manage, media reports said.
With just six weeks until Boris Johnson’s walks through the famous black door of 10 Downing Street, the two remaining candidates are making a bad situation worse by rubbing acid into the wounds of a party so badly divided it could be forced to call an early election and hope for the best, CNN reported.
Johnson’s replacement will not be elected by the 47 million adults registered to vote, but by a much smaller group of around 160,000 grassroots Conservative Party members. The winner will be announced on September 5.
This means running on campaign issues that the candidates believe are most likely to appeal to this very small and hardly diverse group of people.
“The average age of a party member is late 50s. Just under half are of a pensionable age and they are predominately White,” says Tim Bale, who is professor of politics at Queen Mary University of London and has studied the Conservative Party extensively.
“They mostly live in southern England and are (financially) comfortable. They support a strong line on law and order, they approve of low taxes but believe that public services are important and should be funded properly, especially schools, police and, of course, the health service,” Bale adds.
Unsurprisingly, given the cost-of-living crisis, the main issue of debate has been how to handle the economy. Foreign Secretary Liz Truss, who is one of the two, is calling for a different approach from Johnson’s tax rises, and claims that cutting taxes immediately would create growth. Former Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak argues that he believes this is fantasy economics, given the UK is still recovering from the economic shock of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Seconds after it was decided the final two were Truss and Sunak, an even less optimistic Conservative MP told CNN: “We’ve just lost the next election.”
The job of reinventing and uniting the party, which has been struggling in the polls for months and publicly flagellating itself for almost as long, would be tough for anyone. It will be even harder for either of the leadership contenders, both of whom have their hands dirty from previous government jobs and whose supporters have been flinging mud at one another over a long, hot summer, CNN reported.
And if the warring factions cannot overcome these differences, they may find that they’ve wrecked their own chances of staying in power and hand the keys over to an opposition party that’s been locked out of Downing Street since 2010, CNN reported.
More than 14,000 migrants have crossed the Channel to the UK on small boats so far this year. In an attempt to deter the crossings, in April the government announced it would send some asylum seekers deemed to have entered the UK illegally to Rwanda to claim refuge there…reports Asian Lite News
Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak have vowed to toughen controls on migration into the UK as part of their bids to become next Tory leader and prime minister.
Sunak said he would tighten the definition of who qualifies for asylum and introduce a cap on refugee numbers.
Truss said she would extend the UK’s Rwanda asylum plan and increase the number of Border Force staff.
More than 14,000 migrants have crossed the Channel to the UK on small boats so far this year. In an attempt to deter the crossings, in April the government announced it would send some asylum seekers deemed to have entered the UK illegally to Rwanda to claim refuge there.
However, no asylum seekers have been sent to the east-African country yet following a series of legal challenges.
The UK stands to lose the £120m it has paid to Rwanda if the plan is ruled unlawful by the courts at an upcoming hearing.
Both leadership hopefuls said they would explore similar deals with other countries.
Foreign Secretary Liz Truss told the Mail on Sunday the Rwanda policy was the right approach and that she was determined to “see it through to full implementation”.
Truss also said that if she became Tory Party leader and prime minister, she would increase Border Force staffing from 9,000 to 10,800.
She has also promised a strengthened UK bill of rights, adding: “I’m determined to end the appalling people trafficking we’re seeing.”
Former chancellor Sunak has also pledged to do “whatever it takes” to make the Rwanda scheme work and described the UK’s migration policy as “broken” and “chaotic”.
His plans would see the UK re-assessing aid, trade terms and visa options on the basis of a country’s willingness to co-operate with the return of failed asylum seekers and offenders.
He has also promised to give Parliament control over how many come to the UK by creating an annual cap on the number of refugees accepted each year, though this could be changed in the case of emergencies.
And he said he would introduce “enhanced powers” to detain, tag and monitor those entering the UK illegally.
He said: “Right now the system is chaotic, with law-abiding citizens seeing boats full of illegal immigrants coming from the safe country of France with our sailors and coastguards seemingly powerless to stop them.”
But shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper criticised the pair’s proposals, saying they were wasting taxpayers’ money on the Rwanda scheme.
She said: “The Conservatives have been in power for 12 years. It beggars belief that they claim to be the ones to sort things out when they have both failed for so long.”
Last month, 47 people were told they would be flown to Rwanda, with a flight booked for 14 June. But after a series of legal challenges the flight was cancelled.
Another flight has not yet been scheduled.
Earlier this week, a Commons select committee cast doubt on the effectiveness of the scheme, saying there was “no clear evidence” it would stop risky Channel crossings.
Truss rejected Sunak’s criticism that it would be wrong to raise government borrowing to fund tax cuts – a major policy difference between the candidates.
She is pledging around £30bn in immediate tax cuts, arguing they will boost growth, while Mr Sunak has said immediate cuts could fuel already-soaring inflation.
Conservative Party members are due to start receiving ballot papers this week and the winner will be announced on 5 September.
Sunak, who quit as part of the government mutiny against Boris Johnson, topped the MPs’ ballots to qualify for the final run-off with Truss. But polls currently suggest the foreign secretary is the favoured candidate of party members, who decide the leader.
It is thought a significant chunk of the 160,000 or so Tory members will vote in the coming weeks.
Hustings will take place throughout July and August, and the two candidates will square off in a live BBC TV debate on Monday, followed by another hosted by The Sun and TalkTV on Tuesday.
Bookmakers bet on Truss
Truss has undergone a political reinvention to become the favorite to succeed Boris Johnson as leader of the Conservative party and UK Prime Minister.
The Foreign Secretary campaigned for Britain to remain in the European Union before embracing Brexit with the zeal of a convert after the vote went the other way. And she’s gone from yelling slogans as a child against Margaret Thatcher’s 1980s Conservative government and leading Oxford University’s Liberal Democrat society to become the darling of the Tory Party right.
“My parents were left-wing activists, and I’ve been on a political journey ever since,” Truss said in an ITV debate of Tory leadership candidates on Sunday. On Thursday, she told BBC radio that she’d got it wrong on Brexit.
The Rwanda policy is the right policy and @trussliz is determined to see it through and secure our borders – also increasing the Border Force to ensure UK has the proper protection in place directly at our borders.
Now, Truss stands six weeks — and one ballot — away from claiming the top job in UK politics, with only former Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak standing in her way. British bookmakers have installed her as the favorite, and polling of party members by YouGov suggests she’ll soundly defeat her opponent in the runoff vote among the party grassroots.
Truss grew up in Scotland and then Leeds, where she attended a comprehensive school before going on to Oxford University to study Philosophy, Politics and Economics. She then worked for Shell as an industrial economist before moving to Cable & Wireless and the think-tank Reform.
The four survivors were former Sunak (115 votes), Mordaunt (82 votes), Truss (71 votes), and Badenoch (58 votes)…reports Asian Lite News
Former UK Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak and Foreign Secretary Liz Truss emerged as the final two candidates in the Tory leadership race after Penny Mordaunt was knocked out of the contest on Wednesday.
International Trade Minister Penny Mordaunt was knocked out in the final round of ballot among Conservative lawmakers. Rishi Sunak won 137 votes, while Truss received 113 in the final round, reported Xinhua.
The two will now go through a postal ballot among all Conservative Party members, numbering around 200,000, over the summer. The winner, to be announced on September 5, will automatically become UK’s next Prime Minister, replacing outgoing Boris Johnson.
Rishi Sunak, former Chancellor of the Exchequer, topped the first round with 88 votes, according to Graham Brady, chair of the Conservative Backbench 1922 Committee.
The other five survivors were International Trade Minister Penny Mordaunt (67 votes), Foreign Secretary Liz Truss (50 votes), former Equalities Minister Kemi Badenoch (40 votes), Backbench lawmaker Tom Tugendhat (37 votes) and Attorney General Suella Braverman (32 votes).
Subsequently, four candidates made it to the Tory leadership race to replace outgoing Boris Johnson as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (UK) after the third round of voting concluded on July 18. Tom Tugendhat, House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman, was knocked out of the race as he received the fewest votes.
The four survivors were former Sunak (115 votes), Mordaunt (82 votes), Truss (71 votes), and Badenoch (58 votes).
Indian-origin former UK Chancellor Rishi Sunak retained the lead in the fourth round of voting on Tuesday to succeed Johnson as leader of the Conservative Party and Prime Minister, while one candidate was eliminated.
Sunak came on top with 118 votes, followed by Trade Minister Penny Mordaunt with 92 votes and Foreign Secretary Liz Truss with 86 votes. Former Equalities Minister Kemi Badenoch was eliminated from the contest, reducing the number of contestants to three, according to the 1922 Committee of Conservative Party backbenchers.
Boris Johnson replaced Theresa May as prime minister in 2019 and announced on July 7 that he was stepping down as prime minister and leader of the UK Conservative Party.
A total of 58 ministers quit the government following an ethics scandal which ultimately forced the UK premier to resign. Johnson, 58, managed to remain in power for almost three years, despite allegations that he was too close to party donors, that he protected supporters from bullying and corruption allegations, and that he misled Parliament and was dishonest to the public about government office parties that broke pandemic lockdown rules.
Johnson would continue to remain in office until October as caretaker prime minister until a new Tory leader is elected.
Johnson, who won a landslide victory in the general elections in 2019, lost support after he was caught in a string of scandals, including the ‘Party Gate’ scandal and the Pincher scandal involving his appointment of a politician accused of sexual misconduct. (ANI)
