In the UK, none of the four most significant cabinet positions—prime minister, treasury, foreign office, and home affairs—will be held by a white male for the first time. Liz Truss appointed her supporters to high-level positions when she was elected as the new prime minister.
Both Dominic Raab and certain Sunak supporters, including Steve Barclay, Grant Shapps, and Shailesh Vara, were passed over by the incoming prime minister.
Both Priti Patel, the former home secretary, and Nadine Dorries, Boris Johnson’s staunchest supporter, quit.
James Cleverly, Suella Braverman, and Kwasi Kwarteng were all named by Truss as the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Foreign Secretary, and Interior Minister, respectively.
Kit Malthouse is the secretary of education, and Ben Wallace is in charge of defense. Coffey, who also serves as the health secretary, is a trusted Truss ally.
Work and Pensions will be led by Chloe Smith, and Trade will be overseen by Kemi Badenoch. The Commons Leader has been named Penny Mordaunt. The secretary for business, energy, and industrial strategy will be the right-wing Jacob Rees-Mogg.
Will Truss’ decision to choose loyalists to backfire?
In the meanwhile, after Truss fired Johnny Mercer, the former minister’s wife attacked her for “rewarding her followers” and called her an “imbecile.”
Truss appears to be storing up issues for both herself and the party, as these internal divisions can be problematic. If she stumbles, her decisions will be questioned, especially by those who were excluded from today’s events.
Truss and her team will have a challenging list of problems to solve as the nation currently faces many crises, with the decades-high inflation rate taking priority.
The incoming PM will also need to decide how to handle energy costs, which are anticipated to increase by 80% next month and by even more in January.
The Bank of England has forecast that the nation will enter a recession later this year. However, Truss asserted, “I am certain that, working together, we can weather the storm.”
According to sources, amid the continuous difficulties, the recently appointed ministers may be asked to approve right away a plan to freeze energy prices for the upcoming winter that will cost tens of billions of pounds.
Tax reductions and rerouting some health spending to social care may also be on the table, according to reports.
“I will lower taxes to reward hard work and promote business-led development and investment,” declared Truss. Additionally, she promised to “take action this week” about gas and electricity prices as well as broader energy policy.
Along with thinking about the growing Chinese threat, the UK’s pledges to Ukraine in the midst of the continuing Russia-Ukraine war will be a top priority.
