12:48 pm, September 5, 2022
Liz Truss has beaten former chancellor Rishi Sunak to be elected the new leader of the Conservative party and will become the UK’s next prime minister.
The announcement was made at 12.39pm today (Sep 5) by Sir Graham Brady, chairman of the 1922 Committee of Tory backbench MPs.
The foreign secretary garnered 81,326 votes among the Tory membership versus Sunak’s 60,399.
SMMT chief executive Mike Hawes congratulated Truss on her election as party leader and said the organisation was looking ‘forward to working with her and her new team to drive the economic growth and investment the country desperately needs’.
He added: ‘The new prime minister faces immense challenges, not least the urgent need for measures to mitigate the crippling effect of skyrocketing energy prices on businesses and households.
‘Reducing the cost of doing business must be a priority.
‘Growth, however, will depend on a competitive business framework which stimulates investment, drives innovation and positions the UK at the forefront of global issues, not least the race to net zero.
‘UK Automotive is well positioned to deliver these ambitions and the high-value jobs that accompany them.’
Truss now faces the immediate challenge of easing the cost-of-living crisis for households across the country faced with soaring energy bills, and will spend the rest of the day finalising her choices for the Cabinet and wider ministerial roles as well as writing her first prime ministerial speech.
The 47-year-old will be the UK’s third female prime minister, telling the crowd in the Queen Elizabeth II Centre auditorium that she would ‘deliver, deliver, deliver’.
Boris Johnson and Truss will go to Balmoral, rather than Buckingham Palace, for the appointment of the new prime minister tomorrow, in a break from tradition.
The Queen will receive Johnson at her Aberdeenshire home, where he will formally tender his resignation, which will be followed by an audience with Truss, where she will be invited to form a government.
Ahead of the announcement, the pound fell below its pandemic lows against the dollar to its lowest point in decades.
The pound fell below its pandemic lows against the dollar this morning to its lowest point in decades.
It means it has been 37 years since British holidaymakers in the US, and importers bringing products into the UK, got so little bang for their pound.
It briefly fell to a low where one pound sterling could buy just $1.1443, below the $1.14506 it touched on March 19, 2020.
The fall will make imports considerably more expensive for Britons, as much global trade is transacted in dollars.
Back in 1985 when sterling was last lower, countries came together to intentionally weaken the dollar against its international counterparts, especially the German Deutsche mark and the Japanese yen.
In the so-called Plaza Accord – named after the New York hotel where it was signed – the G5 countries comprising the UK, Germany, the US, France and Japan agreed to work towards devaluing the dollar.
