London: Boris Johnson’s successor as the next UK Prime Minister will be revealed on Monday when either Liz Truss, the incumbent Foreign Secretary, or Rishi Sunak, the former Indian-origin Chancellor, will be named as leader of the ruling Conservative Party.
The name will be announced at 12.30 p.m. (around 5 p.m. IST) and the winner of the leadership race will take office on Tuesday after being formally appointed by Queen Elizabeth II, reports the BBC.
If Truss comes to power, she will be the third female Prime Minister of the UK after Margaret Thatcher (1979 1990) and Theresa May (2016 2019).
If Sunak wins the race, he will make history as the first ever Indian-origin to hold the post.
Tipped by pollsters to emerge as the winner, Truss has promised to announce further help to shield consumers within a week of taking over, says the BBC report.
She also plans to deliver 30 billion pounds in tax cuts through an emergency Budget later this month, arguing the UK’s tax burden is behind sluggish growth.
The Foreign Secretary is yet to offer details of her cost-of-living support plan beyond saying she will temporarily scrap green levies on energy bills and reverse the rise in National Insurance introduced during Johnson’s tenure.
While still hopeful, Sunak has signalled he believes he has lost, saying his job “now is just to support a Conservative government”.
The seven-week leadership contest will bring an end to Johnson’s turbulent three years in office, with Monday’s winner set to inherit a flagging economy, with inflation at a 40-year high, the BBC reported.
Johnson was forced out in July by a ministerial revolt over a string of scandals, just over two-and-a-half years after leading the Tories to a landslide victory at the 2019 election.
Although Sunak had the most support among Conservative MPs, he has trailed Truss in opinion polls of the party grassroots.
Johnson is expected to deliver a farewell speech upon leaving office on Tuesday, before the handover of power takes place.
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