Status: 07/26/2022 08:40 a.m
The race to succeed British Prime Minister Johnson is on the home stretch. Yesterday the first TV duel of the candidates Sunak and Truss took place. It got particularly heated when it came to taxes – and private assets.
Who will be “our” next prime minister? With this question, the moderator opens the debate between Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak at 9 p.m. British time on BBC television. But in the next six weeks the whole country is not allowed to vote – only the approximately 150,000 to 180,000 members of the Conservatives decide by postal vote. The party keeps to itself exactly how many there are.
heated debate
The debate quickly becomes heated, as expected when it comes to taxes. Secretary of State Truss promises that she will act immediately because the people in the country are in one of the greatest crises in generations due to the high cost of living. And she gets specific: “I would reverse the increase in social security contributions.”
Sunak has slammed her promises of immediate tax cuts. First you have to get inflation under control. “You promised almost £40bn in unfunded tax cuts. 40bn more debt. At the expense of the country, our children and grandchildren, everyone here has to pay. It’s not conservative politics.” Both of them frequently interrupted each other, with Sunak in particular often interrupting Truss.
Private wealth debate
Culture Minister Nadine Dorries, a supporter of Truss, had already fueled the intra-party conflict feared by many conservatives on Twitter during the day. She shared a report from the Daily Mail, which criticized Sunak for its expensive luxury branded clothing. Truss, on the other hand, wears five-pound earrings.
Asked about this in the TV debate, Truss again emphasizes her humble origins compared to Sunak, who has a fortune of around £730million with his wife. “I went to a public school and I saw my classmates being abandoned and some of the education being poor. That motivated me to go into politics.”
Will Johnson stay in government?
The debate took place in Stoke on Trent, once a Labor stronghold. But most recently Boris Johnson had helped the Conservatives to victory there too. Truss, who remains loyal to Johnson, avoids giving a straight answer when asked if she would give him a role in her government. You don’t think the question will ever come up. Sunak, who ushered in Johnson’s end with his resignation, answered with a resounding no.
Sunak fails to turn the tide
In the city of Workington, another former Labor stronghold, which recently leaned towards Brexit and the Conservatives, residents are following the debate very closely – and have different impressions. “I’d rather have a choice, I’m not impressed by either of them,” says one man. And another resident explains: “Truss was calm and controlled. Sunak was a little rude, he often interrupted her, which irritates me. But he had more charisma.”
By the end of the evening, it doesn’t seem like Sunak’s performance provided the about-face he needs against poll favorite Truss. In the next six weeks, the two will appear again in debates and before party members. But the first voting slips will be sent out in a few days.