In trouble, Liz Truss makes her mea culpa. The British Prime Minister apologized on Monday, October 17, acknowledging “errors” after the cancellation by his new finance minister Jeremy Hunt of almost all the tax cuts announced by his predecessor Kwasi Kwarteng, in order to calm the storm on the markets.
In an interview at the BBC in the evening, the head of government said that she was “sorry for the mistakes that have been made”judging to have wanted to go “too far, too fast”. However, she assured that she would still be at the head of the party for the next elections scheduled in two years, where the opposition is arch-favorite.
Economic program “in tatters”
This act of contrition comes after a “spectacular” day in the House of Commons, where Jeremy Hunt said he was going back to almost all of the tax cuts unveiled a month ago, says the BBC. A total of £32billion in tax cuts of the £45billion that were planned in the mini-budget have been scrapped and the finance minister has warned further action is needed “extremely difficult” to balance the accounts.
“The move was welcomed by investors, but leaves Mr.me Truss in tatters, just weeks after arriving in Downing Street”, comments the British channel. The end in April of the energy price freeze, which was originally scheduled for two years, means that household bills could soon reach “5 000 livres [environ 5 780 euros] per year”is alarmed for his part The Times.
“Ghost” Prime Minister
For half an hour, in the House of Commons, Liz Truss remained “sans expression”watching Jeremy Hunt lay out in front of MPs this economic about-face, reports the Financial Times. The tabloid The Mirror evokes a prime minister “sitting in silence”, “humiliated”.
“These reversals left Mme Truss in a precarious position, […] the conservative rebels accelerating their efforts to [l’]oust”observe The Telegraph. The Sun taunts a head of government “phantom” who ‘holds on to her post, as desperate Tories don’t know how to get rid of her or who to replace her with’. On his side, The Daily Express warns: “Liz Truss faces crucial twenty-four hours in her fight for survival [politique]while more and more MPs are publicly asking him to resign.”