Boris Johnson drops out of UK Prime Minister race

Former prime minister of the United Kingdom, Boris Johnson has ruled himself out of returning to the job.

This week speculations of Johnson’s impending move to replace Liz Truss intensified after she resigned following just 45 days in office.

Truss had replaced Johnson who was forced out of office in July following a series of scandals.

In the wake of Truss’ resignation, Johnson had reportedly undertaken consultations to see if he has support to return, meaning he would need to secure 100 nominations from Conservative lawmakers.

Despite some Conservative lawmakers publicly expressing their support for the former prime minister, Johnson in a statement on Sunday, October 23 withdrew his interest, saying he has enough support but has decided it is not the right thing to do.

“In the last few days I have been overwhelmed by the number of people who suggested that I should once again contest the Conservative Party leadership, both among the public and among friends and colleagues in parliament.

I have been attracted because I led our party into a massive election victory less than three years ago – and I believe I am therefore uniquely placed to avert a general election now,” the statement reads.

“A general election would be a further disastrous distraction just when the government must focus on the economic pressures faced by families across the country.

I believe I am well placed to deliver a Conservative victory in 2024 – and tonight I can confirm that I have cleared the very high hurdle of 102 nominations, including a proposer and a seconder, and I could put my nomination in tomorrow.

“There is a very good chance that I would be successful in the election with Conservative Party members – and that I could indeed be back in Downing Street on Friday.

But in the course of the last days, I have sadly come to the conclusion that this would simply not be the right thing to do. You can’t govern effectively unless you have a united party in parliament.

“And though I have reached out to both Rishi (Sunak) and Penny (Mordaunt) – because I hoped that we could come together in the national interest – we have sadly not been able to work out a way of doing this.

Therefore I am afraid the best thing is that I do not allow my nomination to go forward and commit my support to whoever succeeds. I believe I have much to offer but I am afraid that this is simply not the right time.”

Johnson’s withdrawal leaves the race open to Sunak, former finance minister, and Mordaunt, leader of the House of Commons.

Truss to meet cabinet members, face MPs Wednesday

Britain’s new Prime Minister Liz Truss convenes her senior ministers for an inaugural cabinet meeting on Wednesday on her first full day in office before she faces a barrage of questions in parliament.

Truss, who officially became leader Tuesday at an audience with head of state Queen Elizabeth II in Scotland after the resignation of Boris Johnson, is set to meet her top team at a morning meeting.

They include the most diverse top team in British history ever: Kwasi Kwarteng as Chancellor of the Exchequer, James Cleverly as foreign secretary and Suella Braverman as interior minister.

They face a daunting in-tray of issues, most notably decades-high inflation and how to deal with energy bills set to rise by 80 percent next month and then again in January.Meanwhile, the Bank of England has tipped the country to fall into recession later this year.

She must also navigate the combustible issue of post-Brexit trading arrangements in Northern Ireland, and in one of her first calls with a foreign leader late Tuesday, she agreed with US President Joe Biden “on the importance of protecting” peace in the province.

In its readout of the call, the White House also said Truss and Biden addressed “the challenges posed by China (and) preventing Iran from ever acquiring a nuclear weapon.”

But Truss was bullish as she entered Downing Street for the first time as premier, narrowly avoiding a heavy downpour.

“I am confident that together we can ride out the storm,” she said.Her new ministers may be asked to sign off immediately on a plan to freeze energy bills for the coming winter, possibly longer, a measure that would cost tens of billions of pounds, according to reports.

Tax cuts and diverting some health funding to social care could also reportedly be on the agenda.“I will cut taxes to reward hard work and boost business-led growth and investment,” Truss promised, while also vowing “action this week” on gas and electricity bills and broader energy policy.–

‘Almost ungovernable’ –After Cabinet, Truss will travel to the House of Commons to spar with opposition Labour leader Keir Starmer, in the rival pair’s first Prime Minister’s Questions session.

The often rowdy weekly session, which sees the prime minister quizzed by MPs, will test Truss’s political mettle and rhetorical skills as well as her level of Conservative support.

The 47-year-old won an internal ballot of Tory members on Monday, securing 57 percent of the vote, after a gruelling contest against former finance minister Rishi Sunak that began in July.But the initial stage of the contest saw her net the support of less than a third of the parliamentary party.

She now faces a tough challenge reuniting the ruling Tories following a bitter leadership battle.Conservative MPs are “almost ungovernable” and have “no appetite to cope with difficult decisions,” according to a government insider quoted by the Financial Times on Monday.

“They did for Boris and they may do for Liz, too,” the source told the paper.Truss will likely face a volley of hostile questions from Starmer and the Labour ranks, as they look to capitalise on months of Tory disarray.

Labour has opened up a double-digit lead in the polls but may have to wait two years for the next general election.Truss vowed Monday to lead the Conservatives to victory “in 2024”, with an election due by January 2025 at the latest.

– ‘Dreadful policy’ –Truss, who pitched herself to the Tory grassroots as a tax-cutting free-trade champion ready to slash taxes immediately to turbo-charge growth, faces warnings that these moves could make inflation worse.

The UK has already seen prices rise this year at their steepest rate for four decades, driven by spiralling energy costs.Under her mooted plans to tackle the situation, gas and electricity bills for both households and businesses would be capped near current levels for the coming winter at least.

The government would lend or guarantee private sector loans to energy providers to make up the difference they pay with soaring global wholesale prices.

It remains unclear whether the government will pay for the plan through extra borrowing or ask consumers to pick up the tab over the next two decades through levies on their energy bills.

Paul Johnson, of the respected Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) think-tank, said it was “a dreadful policy” but likely necessary.“Hugely expensive, untargeted, increases risk of shortages,” he noted on Twitter.

But he warned the scale of the problem “means there may just be no practical alternative.”

Liz Truss officially becomes Britain’s 56th Prime Minister after ‘kissing hands’ with the Queen at Balmoral

Liz Truss is officially Britain’s 56th Prime Minister after Boris Johnson tendered his resignation before the Queen asked her to form a government.

The newly-installed PM emerged from the monarch’s Balmoral residence in Scotland after completing the handover of power, a process known as ‘kissing hands’. In a statement, Buckingham Palace said:

‘The Queen received in audience The Right Honourable Elizabeth Truss MP today and requested her to form a new administration. Ms Truss accepted Her Majesty’s offer and kissed hands upon her appointment as Prime Minister and First Lord of the Treasury.’

The grand moment came shortly after Mr. Boris Johnson – accompanied by wife Carrie – left Balmoral following his final 40-minute audience with the Queen.

A statement from Buckingham Palace said the monarch had been ‘graciously pleased’ to accept. Ms. Truss will have little time to celebrate as she must head back to London to thrash out plans for curbing soaring energy bills.

She is expected to cap the typical household bill at £2,500 a year with costs further offset by keeping the £400 handout that had already been committed. That would leave the level only slightly higher than the £1,900 existing cap, and a thousand pounds below the figure it was due to hit next month, according to Mail Online.

Ms Truss will deliver her own speech on the steps of Downing Street around 4pm. The foreign secretary becomes the nation’s third female after she secured just over 81,000 to Mr. Sunak’s just over 60,000.

I look forward to working with Liz Truss – Atiku

The presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, Atiku Abubakar, has congratulated Liz Truss on her election as the leader of the Conservative Party of the United Kingdom.

We reported earlier that Truss, who was elected Monday, will formally take office on Tuesday, and become the new UK Prime Minister after Johnson tenders his resignation to Queen Elizabeth II.

“The UK has proven, yet again, the resilient power of democracy. The election of MP Liz Truss as leader of the Conservative Party was a hard-fought process, but the ultimate winners are the people of the United Kingdom,” Atiku.

The PDP standard bearer also said he looked forward to working with Truss in the areas of human capital development, trade, and democracy.

“I join all other friends of the UK to celebrate this moment. I equally look forward to an enhanced partnership of the new leadership of the Conservative Party with Nigeria and African countries in the areas of human capital development, trade and strengthening democracy and the integrity of elections. -AA,” Atiku posted on his Facebook page, Monday afternoon.

Liz Truss to become UK’s next prime minister after beating Rishi Sunak in race to succeed Boris Johnson

Liz Truss will become the next prime minister after defeating Rishi Sunak in the Conservative Party leadership contest on Monday, September 5.

The foreign secretary will succeed Boris Johnson on Tuesday September 6, and become the nation’s third female. She secured just over 81,000 to Mr. Sunak’s just over 60,000.

Ms Truss is expected to make a speech outside Number 10 once she takes office and will then get to work on appointing her cabinet.

In a break from tradition on Tuesday, Mr. Johnson and his successor will go to Balmoral rather than Buckingham Palace to meet Queen Elizabeth, who will ask the new leader to form a government. The pair would fly there in separate planes for security reasons.

Boris Johnson was forced to announce his resignation in July after months of scandal and will travel to Scotland to meet Queen Elizabeth on Tuesday at Balmoral Castle in Scotland to formally tender his resignation.

Ms. Truss has promised to announce further help to shield consumers within a week of taking over.

She plans to deliver £30bn in tax cuts through an emergency Budget later this month, arguing the UK’s tax burden is behind sluggish growth.