GG News Bureau
London, 27th July. There was no clear winner between former Chancellor Rishi Sunak and Foreign Secretary Liz Truss on Tuesday, after the UK’s prime ministerial candidates clashed fiercely on their economic policies and tax plans in their first television debate as finalists.
Sunak was slightly ahead of Truss in a snap Opinium poll of who performed best in the BBC debate on Monday night, with 39% to 38%.
However, 47% of Conservative Party voters polled thought the Foreign Secretary was the better performer, with 38% preferring Sunak.
The poll of 1,032 British adults found that voters couldn’t decide between Sunak and Truss, with only one point separating the two. In a foreshadowing of what a general election might bring, data showed that 41% of Opposition Labour Party voters in the survey thought 42-year-old Sunak performed better, while 30% preferred Truss.
43 percent of those polled also said the Conservatives should elect Sunak, while 41 percent said they should elect Truss, who is 47 years old, with the remaining 12 percent choosing “do not know” or abstaining.
You’ve promised over 40 billion pounds of unfunded tax cuts 40 billion pounds more borrowing, said Sunak, repeatedly confronting his opponent on her pledge to cut taxes from day one as a new Prime Minister.
“That is the country’s credit card, and it’s our children and grandchildren, everyone here’s kids will pick up the tab for that. There’s nothing Conservative about it,” he said.
The former Chancellor maintains that the UK’s tax burden is the result of unprecedented levels of government spending required to keep the economy afloat during the COVID pandemic, and that controlling inflation comes first.
He warned that Truss’ tax-cut plan would “throw millions into misery” and cost the Conservatives the next general election, which is expected in 2024.
Meanwhile, the Foreign Secretary insisted that no other country was raising taxes and accused Sunak of having no growth strategy.
“This Chancellor has raised taxes to the highest rate in 70 years, and we’re now predicting a recession. The truth is in the figures,” she said.
The debate became heated at several points during the fiery ‘Our Next Prime Minister’ programme, which also saw the pair grilled on their tough stance on China and even their dress sense after jibes on social media about Sunak’s expensive tastes.
Sunak was defiant, saying he was “not going to apologise” for his background, adding that his parents had worked hard and saved for him and his siblings to get a good, if expensive, education.
“Such aspirational values are Conservative,” he declared, drawing applause from the audience in Stoke-on-Trent, England.
Truss sought to downplay her camp’s jabs at the British Indian ex-attire minister’s saying she has “no issue with how expensive anybody else’s clothes are” and is “not going to give Rishi fashion advice,” despite being a “great admirer of his dress sense.”
Sunak said he admired Truss and that they were ultimately on the same team during the debate’s more relaxed moments. When asked if he would work for a government led by her, he said yes. Truss also stated that if she becomes Prime Minister, she would “love” to have Sunak on her team.
The pair will continue their aggressive campaigning across the country, appearing at a series of hustings organised by the Conservative Campaign Headquarters.
The winner will be elected by an estimated 180,000 Tory members, who are currently deliberating before casting postal ballots beginning early next month. The ballot will close on September 2 in the evening, and the winner will be announced on September 5.
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