Liz Truss, Britain’s new prime minister, is the ‘turning woman’

• Fleur Lunsbash

  UK and Ireland correspondent

Liz Truss becomes the new Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. The 47-year-old politician was elected by a majority of the Conservative Party to take responsibility for this… great work to carry. It provides her with a guaranteed place in British history – yet to be written.

Truss took her first cabinet position in 2012 and then quickly grew into the Conservative Party. First, as an enthusiastic minister of international trade, he presented the country under this banner Global Britain Back on the map after Brexit, with many trade deals.

She was then appointed Secretary of State in Boris Johnson’s second government. Supporters describe her as an actor: a person who not only invents policy, but can also implement it.

The political path of Truss is nothing but the mainstream. The daughter of left-wing parents from northern England did not go to Eton private school – like many Conservative British prime ministers. After regular public school, she secured a place at Oxford and initially joined the opposition party: the Liberal Democrats.

There she spoke as an advocate for the abolition of the monarchy – a mortal sin within royal conservatives. And her Brexit turnaround makes Truss a very nice choice for the right wing of the Conservative Party: in 2016 she voted against Britons leaving the European Union, but only decided to make Brexit work. .

Although the term “the rest In Brexit clothes “often thrown at her head, her hardline views on Brexit now have the support of almost all Brexit supporters in the Conservative faction. She is, as she put it, a realist who indulges in all sides of the debate.”

Within the Conservative Party, Truss evolved into a Thatcher neo-libertarian who wanted to return to the core values ​​of Conservative thought: low taxes, small government, and free markets. Her foreign policy doesn’t seem to be about making friends: she recently slipped into a debate in which she was not yet sure whether French President Emmanuel Macron was a “friend” or “enemy”.

Nor will Britain’s Brexit agreements with the EU on Northern Ireland’s borders be treated with caution under her leadership: the bill to scrap unilateral agreements would undoubtedly have his blessing.

And she has no intention of dealing with Scotland peacefully. She has said that she wants to ignore the leader of the Scottish Nationalists (SNP), Nicola Sturgeon, and thus the struggle for Scottish independence. Truss described sturgeon as an “attention seeker”.

As Prime Minister, Truss faces enormous challenges on the board. The country is on the brink of recession. Purchasing power hasn’t been this low in 60 years and millions of Brits won’t be able to pay their energy bills this winter. It will have to act immediately to reduce the economic crisis.

Throughout the campaign, Truss preferred tax cuts to boost the economy Strengthen. Policies that the Conservatives are interested in, but not a measure that will help countless elderly and low-income people get through the winter. While it is precisely these groups that suffer from high energy prices and rapidly rising inflation.

Although Truss initially rejected direct aid packages for the poor – no handouts – As the UK heads into an economic downturn, it has promised more help for families who can no longer make ends meet.

In her victory speech today, Truss said she would lay out a “bold plan” to cut taxes and grow the economy:

But many economists are skeptical of her plan to cut taxes on the one hand and at the same time increase the national debt by borrowing. Its Prime Minister and former Finance Minister Rishi Sunak has warned that her economic ideas will increase inflation and devalue the pound.

Then there is another problem for the new prime minister: the shadow of Boris Johnson. According to polls, half of the Conservative Party now regrets showing the charismatic politician the door. Nobody, including the outgoing prime minister himself, is ruling out the possibility that he will make a comeback attempt.

Johnson is missed even more because the Conservatives lag behind Labor in national opinion polls. According to several members of the Conservative Party, Johnson is the only candidate who can unite the party and reach British voters in both northern and southern England. After all, he won a landslide victory for the Conservatives in the 2019 election – a majority they lost at an unprecedented rate.