Rishi Sunak and King Charles III meet at the palace
London:
Rishi Sunak has been appointed Britain's Prime Minister by King Charles III, the palace said. Mr Sunak, 42, became the leader of the Conservatives yesterday after Boris Johnson called off his comeback bid and Penny Mordaunt didn't get enough backing.
Here's your 10-point cheatsheet to this big story
- Mr Sunak has reworked his team, sources have said. Several ministers have been asked to quit, they said, adding the new Prime Minister will appoint leaders who have been supporting him to carry out his programmes.
- "Right now, our country is facing a profound economic crisis. The aftermath of COVID still lingers. [Vladimir] Putin's war in Ukraine has destabilised energy markets and supply chains the world over," Mr Sunak told reporters after meeting King Charles.
- "I want to pay tribute to my predecessor, Liz truss. She was not wrong, to want to improve growth in this country. It is a noble aim. And I admired her restlessness to create change. But some mistakes were made. Not born of ill will, or bad intentions. Quite the opposite, in fact, but mistakes nonetheless. And I have been elected as a leader of my party and your Prime Minister, in part, to fix them. And that work begins immediately," Mr Sunak said.
- "This government will have integrity, professionalism, and accountability at every level. Trust is earned and I will earn yours. I will always be grateful to Boris Johnson for his incredible achievements as Prime Minister," Mr Sunak said.
- The Indian-origin leader is the youngest to hold the UK's top post in 200 years and the first Hindu Prime Minister of Britain. Mr Sunak is Britain's third Prime Minister this year, after Liz Truss left office just 49 days into her term. The new premier inherited a daunting array of problems.
- Departing Downing Street, Ms Truss wished Sunak "every success" and said she remained "more convinced than ever" that Britain needed to be "bold" in confronting the challenges it faced.
- Ms Truss left office as the shortest-serving premier in history, after a calamitous tax-slashing budget sparked economic and political turmoil. Mr Sunak, after the stunning turnaround in political fortunes, has vowed to work hard as Britain confronts decades-high inflation, surging borrowing costs and imminent recession.
- But he also faces the uphill task of uniting a party riven with divisions and infighting. Gavin Williamson, who served as a minister in the Tory governments of both Theresa May and Mr Johnson, said the party was in the "last chance saloon" on unity.
- Mr Sunak will start appointing his top team before facing his first session of "Prime Minister's Questions" in parliament on Wednesday.
- Finance Minister Jeremy Hunt -- appointed by Ms Truss just 11 days ago in a bid to salvage her premiership -- could remain in the role after stabilising the markets. Mr Hunt endorsed Mr Sunak on Sunday, writing in the Telegraph that he was a leader "willing to make the choices necessary for our long-term prosperity".
