Liz Truss wins UK leadership contest to become next Prime Minister

Simon Dawson/No 10 Downing Street

Liz Truss won the British Conservative Party leadership contest on Monday, defeating Rishi Sunak. Truss is faced with a massive cost of living crisis after beating the former chancellor's challenge with 81,326 votes compared to Sunak’s 60,399. 

Truss pledged to be “bold” in reviving the economy by cutting taxes to alleviate the burden faced by millions of Brits amid an ongoing energy crisis, which was brought on by Britain’s sanctions against Russia, which were entirely supported by Truss under outgoing Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s leadership. 

“I campaigned as a Conservative and I will govern as a Conservative... I will deliver a bold plan to cut taxes and grow our economy,” said Truss. “We will deliver a great victory for the Conservative Party in 2024.” 

Truss had praise for Johnson, who will formally hand power to Truss on Tuesday, stating that he “got Brexit done, crushed Jeremy Corbyn, rolled out the vaccine, and stood up to Vladimir Putin.”

Johnson congratulated Truss, telling the British public that the new Prime Minister “has the right plan to tackle the cost of living crisis, unite our party and continue the great work of uniting and levelling up our country.”

As detailed in the British press, Truss, who will be Britain’s 56th Prime Minister, faces one of the most difficult challenges in decades, as the inflating costs of living and exorbitant gas prices continue to soar as the pound loses value against the U.S. dollar. 

Speculation is mounted that Truss may move to freeze energy bills, possibly be loaning taxpayer pounds to companies to stave off their bankruptcies and keep costs down. 

Gas prices in the U.K. surged by an additional 30% today following Russia’s decision to indefinitely suspend operations of the Nord Stream pipeline. 

The pound also slipped to a 37-year low against the U.S. dollar, mounting even further pain for the average Brit.