Liz Truss has received another boost in her campaign to become leader of the Conservative Party and become Britain’s next prime minister. Former Health Secretary Sajid Javid has spoken out in favor of Foreign Secretary in the race to succeed Boris Johnson. In an op-ed for The Times on Wednesday, Javid praised Truss’s experience in government. She could “unite the party” and “give it meaning again”. It said: “If we can renew our government with a bold agenda, the Conservatives are still able to challenge Labour [Schottische Nationalpartei] Defeating the SNP and the Liberal Democrats.” Liz Truss is best placed to do this.
Javid, considered a friend of Truss’ competitor Rishi Sunak, wrote of the former finance minister’s plans that they risked the country “sleepwalking into a social-democratic model of sprawling government and low growth.” Javid was particularly offended by Sunak’s reluctance to lower taxes. “There are people who say that taxes can only be cut once economic growth returns. I believe the exact opposite: tax cuts are a prerequisite for growth,” says Javid.
Truss’s team said she was happy to have Javid “on her team” after spending time together in government. “We need the best players on the field and his experience gives our campaign another boost,” said a spokesman. Javid’s support shows that Truss is bringing the party together and rallying behind their “bold plan”.
Javid joins the clear favorite in the follow-up question with his choice recommendation. On Thursday night, the ConservativeHome party’s website published a recent survey of Tory members. Of these, 58 percent were in favor of Truss and only 26 percent in favor of Sunak. Even a turnaround in the past few days didn’t seem to have hurt her in the survey. She had announced a plan to cut public sector pay to save £11 billion (around €13 billion) a year. However, she hadn’t considered that this would also mean that police officers, nurses and teachers would earn less.
Truss positioned further to the right than Sunak
After violent reactions, she cashed in on the project. Truss is also considered a favorite because the former Brexit opponent has positioned herself further to the right than Sunak. In addition, several members of the government have backed the foreign minister. Sunak also admits that, unlike Truss, he has left the government. As a result, he is seen by many as less loyal, especially since it was revealed that the website for his election campaign was registered back in December last year.
Javid himself threw his hat in the ring after Boris Johnson announced his retirement. However, he had to end his candidacy quickly after it became clear that he would not get enough support from the parliamentary group in the House of Commons. Javid’s resignation as health secretary in July – immediately followed by Sunak’s as finance secretary – led to a wave of resignations that led to Johnson’s resignation. Sunak and Truss are currently recruiting around 200,000 party members who are supposed to cast their votes by September 2nd. The result will be presented on September 5th.
