The debate between the five Tory candidates still vying for Britain’s next prime minister over tax cuts heated up in the second televised debate, with frontrunners Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss focusing their battle on the economy.
With no clear candidate to succeed Boris Johnson, who is stepping down after a series of scandals, it is still hard to predict who will become the next leader, exposing divisions within the ruling Conservative Party.
Former finance minister Rishi Sunak has emerged as the preferred candidate for the 358 Conservative MPs in Parliament. Members will hold more ballots this week to eventually narrow down the number of contestants to two.
Sunak said on Sunday evening that his top priority was to tackle inflation and prevent it from getting worse before tax cuts are passed.
Foreign Secretary Liz Trice said Sunac had raised taxes to the highest level in 70 years and proposed plans to scrap pay rises and corporation tax at a cost of more than 30 billion pounds ($36 billion) a year. Is.
“Rising taxes is currently stifling economic growth,” Truss said in the debate, hosted by ITV.
US Commerce Secretary Penny Mordant, currently in third place, also hit out at Sunak, saying people needed “urgent action” to tackle the rising cost of living.
A JL poll for the Sunday Telegraph found that almost half of Conservative voters think Sunak would make a good prime minister, ahead of Truss and Mordant.
However, Terrace also enjoys widespread support, including among Johnson’s most loyal. Mordant is leading polls of 200,000 members of the party who will eventually become Tory leader and thus prime minister, suggesting the race to succeed Johnson remains open.
Source: Lebanon Debate
