The new British Prime Minister and his Treasury Secretary Jeremy Hunt need to lift a country out of economic crisis. Meanwhile, Rishi Sunak’s cabinet is taking shape.
The new British prime minister, Rishi Sunak, has considered postponing his budget proposal to next week. According to a report in The Times on Wednesday, he has a £40bn (€45.9bn) hole to plug. Sunak is expected to meet Treasury Secretary Jeremy Hunt on Wednesday to discuss his proposals to raise taxes and cut public spending, the report said.
A spokeswoman for former prime minister Liz Truss said last week that Truss’ successor will decide whether to present a planned budget for October 31.
After weeks of government crisis, Sunak is faced with the task of uniting the country and his party in the midst of severe economic turmoil. Treasury Secretary Jeremy Hunt was recently appointed by Truss. After the fiasco surrounding Truss’ plans for debt-financed tax cuts, which have since been withdrawn, he calmed financial markets. Meanwhile, however, the Conservatives have fallen in the polls. The opposition Labor Party is far above the rest and is calling for new elections.
It may be that the government meets for a first meeting on Wednesday. Sunak will also go to Parliament for the first time, where fierce attacks are expected from opposition leader Keir Starmer of the Labor Party. The opposition is likely to repeat its call for new elections.
Cabinet with many innovations
The first names of the new cabinet were known on Tuesday. Sunak brought former deputy prime minister Dominic Raab back into the government. Raab will resume his former roles as deputy prime minister and justice secretary, Downing Street said on Tuesday. The 48-year-old previously held these positions under former Prime Minister Boris Johnson and is considered one of Sunak’s key allies.
He was criticized for his plan to use the so-called Bill of Rights to reduce the influence of European Court of Human Rights case law on British law.
British Home Secretary Suella Braverman, who was sacked for breaking the rules (official email from a private email address), is back in office less than a week after her resignation. New British Prime Minister Sunak named the right-wing politician on Tuesday afternoon as the first woman confirmed in the cabinet, after several male colleagues. Braverman, from the right wing of the party, represents an extremely hard line on immigration policy.
Wallace and smartly stay
Defense Secretary Ben Wallace and Secretary of State James Cleverly will also retain their posts. Sunak’s new Conservative Party general secretary will be Nadhim Zahawi, who recently campaigned for Johnson’s return to Downing Street. The appointment is seen as an attempt to wrap the camp around Johnson, whose relationship with Sunak is considered to be heavy.
In return, at least eleven ministers and secretaries of state from the Truss government are leaving the cabinet. Among them are three close allies of Johnson: eccentric economics secretary Jacob Rees-Mogg, education secretary Kit Malthouse and conservative former secretary general Jake Berry.
(APA/dpa)