Amidst political and economic turmoil in the island nation, Former Chief of Treasury, Rishi Sunak will become the next Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. Following the resignation of Liz Truss as prime minister, Rishi Sunak entered the race for the country’s top job which received the support of a large number of MPs from the conservative party. With the election of Rishi Sunak as head of the Tory party, he will be the first person of color to become the Prime Minister of the European nation.
Rishi Sunak who has Indian roots is being termed as “Desi” UK Prime Minister by various Indian media. Sunak will be the first British prime minister with South Asian roots and its first Hindu leader — a milestone for a country with an extensive colonial past, and one that is still contested.
In his first public statement, Sunak said “the United Kingdom is a great country, but there is no doubt we face a profound economic challenge.”
Now as head of government of the United Kingdom, Rishi Sunak will have to deal with multiple challenges in and out of the United Kingdom. The island country is currently facing inflation which is the highest in 40 years. The economic instability and failure of the exchequer to contain high inflation in the economy have seriously impacted the foundation stones of the British economy.
Rishi Sunak was chief of Treasury in the government led by Ex-Prime Minister Boris Johnson who had to resign from the top post for his unethical acts.
Millions of Britons have been finding it difficult to cope with the ongoing economic crisis and increase in prices of essential commodities. Fuel and energy costs have gone through the roof while increasing borrowing costs have poured oil into the fire.
Rishi Sunak will also have to deal with the crisis among the party members who have been divided over how to deal with the economic and political crisis in the country. Even though Rishi Sunak won the party leadership election, many people within the Conservative party believe that Rishi Sunak does not have the experience of the lives of ordinary people to understand and solve their issues.
The decision of Boris Johnson to run again for the top job triggered a crisis within the Tory party.
Liz Truss who became Prime Minister of the UK following the resignation of Boris Johnson, resigned after 45 days in office as she was not able to deliver upon the promises made by her during the election campaign for the Tory leadership. She had earlier promised to bring the country out of the economic crisis through various tax and economic reforms.
Rishi Sunak also had contested for the top post at that time along with Liz Truss. Even though Rishi received enough votes from members of the parliament of the conservative party, Liz Truss received majority votes from the ordinary party members.
The latest election of Rishi Sunak as head of the Tory party can be seen as a vindication.
Following the resignation of Liz Truss, Rishi Sunak entered the race to become head of the party. Along with Rishi, former Prime Minister Boris Johnson and another party leader Penny Mordaunt also entered the race for the top post. While Boris Johnson bowed out of the race a few days ago, Penny Mordaunt also reportedly conceded the race as she failed to get the backing of 100 Tory lawmakers. A contestant for the party’s top post requires the support of at least 100 MPs from the Tory party to stay in the race.