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British former finance minister Rishi Sunak said on Friday he was running to replace Boris Johnson, three days after helping to launch the cascade of resignations that brought the prime minister down.
Johnson announced on Thursday that he would stand down as prime minister after a mass rebellion in his Conservative Party, triggered by the latest in a series of scandals that had fatally undermined public trust.
Johnson’s imminent departure has added political uncertainty to an already difficult mix of soaring inflation, slowing growth and industrial unrest, set against a backdrop of war in Ukraine and Britain’s ongoing struggle to adapt to life after Brexit.
“Someone has to grip this moment and make the right decisions. That’s why I’m standing to be the next leader of the Conservative Party and your prime minister,” Sunak said in a campaign video released on Twitter.
Sunak and Health Secretary Sajid Javid quit the cabinet on Tuesday within minutes of each other, setting in motion a chain of events that led to Johnson’s decision to step down.
The rules and timetable for the contest to replace Johnson are due to be set out next week by a party committee.
Sunak’s budget last year put Britain on course for its biggest tax burden since the 1950s, which critics said undermined his claim to favour lower taxes.
During the COVID-19 pandemic Sunak oversaw around 400 billion pounds ($481 billion) of economic support, avoiding a big jump in unemployment but letting public borrowing rise to a peacetime record high in the face of a historic slump in GDP.
Sunak’s popularity with Conservative lawmakers was later dented after he raised payroll taxes in April to fund higher health and social care spending, and announced plans to raise corporation tax sharply in 2023.
Sunak said in his resignation letter it had become…
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Source : france24
