RISHI SUNAK WILL become the UK’s prime minister tomorrow morning after Liz Truss has chaired her final Cabinet meeting and visited the king at Buckingham Palace, Downing Street has said.
Truss will chair her final Cabinet at 9am and will make a statement outside No 10 at 10.15am.
She will then go to Buckingham Palace to offer her resignation to the King.
The king will then meet new Conservative leader Rishi Sunak and invite him to form a government.
Sunak will make a statement in Downing Street at 11.35am.
Speaking at Conservative Party Headquarters after his victory was announced, Sunak said he was “humbled and honoured” to have been chosen as the next prime minister, which he described as the “greatest privilege of my life”.
“The United Kingdom is a great country but there is no doubt we face a profound economic challenge,” he added during the brief speech in which he took no media questions.
“We now need stability and unity and I will make it my utmost priority to bring our party and our country together.”
Polling indicated the struggle Sunak faces in winning back the public to the Tory party.
A YouGov poll of 12,000 adults between Friday and Sunday suggested Labour leader Keir Starmer is favoured as the “best prime minister” in 389 constituencies compared to Sunak coming out on top in 127.
Taoiseach Micheál Martin gave his congratulations to Sunak, Tweeting:
“I look forward to working with you, as British PM, on the important issues we face on these islands, and globally.”
Congratulations @RishiSunak on becoming leader of the Conservative Party.
— Micheál Martin (@MichealMartinTD) October 24, 2022
I look forward to working with you, as British PM, on the important issues we face on these islands, and globally.
Two EU leaders also congratulated Sunak while stressing that “stability” was needed for Brussels and London to face shared challenges.
“Congratulations to Rishi Sunak on becoming the UK’s prime minister,” European Council President Charles Michel tweeted.
“Working together is the only way to face common challenges… and bringing stability is key to overcoming them,” he said.
The president of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola, said the EU legislature was committed to having “a strong and constructive relationship with the UK”.
“At a time of enormous challenges, Europe needs political and economic stability. Our core interests remain the same,” she said.
The pointed use of the word “stability” by both highlights EU hopes that Sunak would take a more conciliatory stance towards Brussels than his predecessors, Boris Johnson and Liz Truss.
Those two both sought to unilaterally override the part of the Brexit agreement that left the UK territory of Northern Ireland under EU rules for goods, risking confrontation with Brussels.
It was not yet known if Sunak would pursue that course or seek a negotiated agreement on the so-called Northern Ireland Protocol in the Brexit treaty on terms acceptable to the EU.
With additional reporting by PA and AFP
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