By Mohammed Kudrati
Foreign Secretary Liz Truss has been elected by the Conservative Party as its new leader and as the next Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (UK). Sir Graham Brady - the chair of the Conservative Party's '1922' Committee - announced the results.
Truss defeated her competitor, former Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak by almost 21,000 votes, which was put up to the larger Conservative Party of 172,437 eligible voting members.
She is expected to be sworn in as the next British Prime Minister by Queen Elizabeth II tomorrow afternoon in Scotland, which will be a first, as such swearing-in ceremonies have traditionally taken place in the Buckingham Palace in England.
Later tomorrow evening, she is expected to announce key appointment to her cabinet and appear in the House of Commons as prime minister for the time on Wednesday.
She will be the third female prime minister, after Margaret Thatcher and Teresa May.
This election culminated the intra-party convention on electing its new leaders, which started off with 11 candidates, after incumbent Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced his resignation as prime minister and leader of the party on July 7. Before Truss' swearing in, he is expected to go to Scotland and tender his resignation to the Queen tomorrow morning.
Johnson led UK through the COVID-19 pandemic and oversaw Brexit but had been involved in numerous scandals including hosting parties when social curbs were in force as a health measure to combat the pandemic and being hushed about one of his aides being involved in a sexual harassment scandal. He congratulated her on her victory.
The new government led by Truss has a slew of economic problems falling in its lap. For starters, the UK is facing a severe cost of living crisis driven by high energy bills as the UK's gas from Russia dries up as it fights in Ukraine. The country reported a 10.1% inflation rate year-on-year in July 2022 driven by energy bills. Her government must also lead the UK through a recession that is expected to begin later this year, which looks all but certain according to the Bank of England.
In her victory speech, she said that she is keen on spelling out tax cuts and Value-Added Tax reductions to put more cash in peoples' hands over subsidies or handouts to combat the crisis.
With respect to India, Truss' government will also beoverseeing a new free-trade agreement, which is being expected to be unveiled between the two countries in October 22, or more specifically, by Diwali. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has also congratulated Truss on her victory.
Also Read: Russia Turns Off Gas Pipeline To Germany: What This Means For Europe
