LONDON (Parliament Politics Magazine) – The race to become UK’s next prime minister has entered a critical stage.
By Wednesday, Conservative MPs will have narrowed the shortlist down to two, who will then be presented to Conservative party members throughout the summer.
The first TV discussion made it clear that there is a lot at stake in the coming days.
Three things come to attention in the exchanges.
First off, Boris Johnson is a topic that the Conservative Party wants to leave behind.
The candidates for Mr. Johnson’s replacement want the new chapter to begin as quickly as possible, even though it has only been eight days since he decided to step down.
No one among the five would publicly affirm the honesty of the prime minister. For expressing the opposite, Tom Tugendhat was praised. Even Liz Truss, who is regarded as Mr. Johnson’s closest ally and is supported by his major allies, would not say it.
Four out of the five were anticipated to support Mr. Johnson as members of the government a little more than a week ago. Politics moves on quickly.
Second, there is a significant ideological disagreement among the contenders over taxes that occasionally overflowed in the confrontations between Rishi Sunak and Ms. Truss.
Mr. Sunak desires to come across as a fiscal realist. Ms. Truss desires to be seen as a conservative who supports low taxes.
As he initiated a defence of his economic stance, Mr. Sunak revealed a more aggressive, less robotic side to himself.
He was very critical of Ms. Truss, stating that her intentions to slash taxes were unreal and that she needed to be more forthright about the effects of her plan to borrow money and gradually pay off Covid debt.
When Mr. Sunak worked at the Treasury, Ms. Truss criticised him for raising national insurance and corporation tax.
When Tom Tugendhat accused Mr. Sunak of claiming that he was only raising National Insurance because the prime minister had instructed him to, he came out swinging.
According to Penny Mordaunt’s supporters, she intended to transcend the tax controversy. But there’s a chance she might squeeze in a debate that could be defining of this race for leadership.
Third, it was observed tonight that there were disagreements within the Conservative Party over how transgender people should self-identify.
In recent days, Ms. Mordaunt has been questioned about her role. She made an effort to clarify, explaining that although a person’s gender identity may change legally, biological distinctions will always exist.
She declared that she was opposed to any reforms affecting trans athletes and sports.
Kemi Badenoch, however, didn’t hold back and pressed Ms. Mordaunt on her explanation of her role as minister for women and equalities.
This did not seem to be a cordial discussion between party associates. It appeared to be a battle for the Conservative Party’s future.
What next?
Rishi Sunak is anticipated by Tory MPs to advance to the final two.
The competition right now is to be the opposing candidate.
Penny Mordaunt appeared to be on the march up to this point and had the momentum. But did she provide her party and the public enough information about what she wanted to do with the office? Could she have been affected in any way by the attacks?
Although not everyone agreed with Liz Truss’ assessment of her evening, her staff is optimistic that her call to rally the right wing of the party was heard. They believe the discussion with Mr. Sunak will demonstrate that the two are putting forth economic perspectives that members should consider.
But keep in mind that the decision lies in the hands of the Conservative MPs who will make the announcement in the following week.
