” Fierce “, “inflamed”, « mordant »… the British press had no shortage of adjectives to qualify the debate which pitted former Finance Minister Rishi Sunak, the head of diplomacy Liz Truss, the Secretary of State for International Trade Penny Mordaunt, the former -Secretary of State for Equality Kemi Badenoch and MP Tom Tugendhat.
The calendar is accelerating: after a series of votes by Conservative MPs, there will only be two candidates left on Wednesday evening, who will be decided by activists during the month of August. The winner will be known on September 5.
During the 60 minutes of debate, “it was not easy to remember that these five people are members of the same party”ironically BBC. “And the two who exchanged the hardest blows [Rishi Sunak et Liz Truss] were sitting around the same table, at the Council of Ministers, there are still fifteen days “recalls the British broadcaster.
Economic questions have monopolized the exchanges and have given rise to several passes of arms, in particular between the three favorites, observes the Daily Telegraph. “Ms. Truss told ex-finance minister that raising taxes would ‘stifle economic growth'”to which Mr. Sunak retorted that Ms. Truss’ tax proposals fell under the “socialism”.
Mr Sunak, touted as a favorite in the race to succeed Boris Johnson, also attacked Ms Mordaunt’s economic agenda, mocking that “even Jeremy Corbyn [l’ancien dirigeant du Labour, le parti de gauche] didn’t get that far”.
Personal attacks
But the settling of scores “were not just fiscal. They were also personal”is surprised The Times. And whoever moves to Downing Street in September “might have a hard time putting the pieces back together”estimates the daily.
ITVThe channel organizing the debate, had invited the participants to ask a specific question to one or one of their opponents, “and all took the opportunity to undermine the candidacy” of their direct competitor, observes the Financial Times.
Le Times in particular “acidity” of Rishi Sunak’s question to Liz Truss, whom he asked “what she regretted the most: having been a Liberal-Democrat during her adolescence, or having voted for the maintenance of the United Kingdom in the European Union in 2016”.
Ms. Truss did well, telling him that in her childhood neighborhood, young people “didn’t have the opportunities that ‘you were able to have in your school'”in reference to the expensive private education received by the former Minister of Finance.
“Disaster”
“It was a hell of a debate”summarizes the political commentator Robert Peston on the site ofITV. “I have never seen senior Tory ministers and MPs clash so publicly and so openly”.
“What I do know is that this debate – and this competition – is not far from a disaster for the Tory party, because Labor will never stop recalling and repeating any attack launched by candidates against their competitors and against the actions of their government”he adds. “One of them is going to win the race and become prime minister. But the Tory party is on course to lose”.
To the left, The Guardian judge the debate ” embarrassing “ for conservatives and predicts that “Labour will have a good laugh until the next elections”. The daily criticizes the absence of political proposals during the 60 minutes of confrontation: “forget the climate crisis and the cost of living – prime minister candidates have nothing to offer but personal vendettas, ambition and malevolence”.
Between invectives and accusations, the five Tories have nevertheless found some rare common ground, such as the turn of the screw on the increase in the salaries of civil servants and the refusal to call early legislative elections. The fate of Boris Johnson was also unanimous, underlines The Independent : invited to raise their hands if they were ready to offer a ministerial portfolio to the resigning Prime Minister, “no one moved”.