The rise and fall of Liz Truss – from pork markets to a car crash

Published

2 years ago

October 20, 2022

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Just over a month since pledging to “deliver, deliver, deliver!” on the steps of Downing Street, today Liz Truss’s political career came to a screeching end.

She did deliver: a premiership characterised by chaotic U-turns and infighting, and what is likely the shortest tenure as PM in British history.

Critics believe she was never cut out for the job, even as they praised the steely determination and political skill that led her to Number 10. But her meteoric rise through the party ended almost as quickly as it started.

She entered parliament in 2010, as the Conservatives returned to government for the first time in 13 years, and quickly rose through the Tory ranks.

She was education minister, environment secretary, then justice secretary, before being demoted under Theresa May to chief secretary to the Treasury.

Sonia Khan, who was the adviser to former chancellor Sajid Javid, said Ms Truss’s role in the Treasury “was the making of her”.

She said: “She began to wear bright colours and use social media in a way her colleagues weren’t at the time, it gave her a platform to project herself and she used that to her advantage.”

However, Ms Truss was also becoming known for her awkward public appearances and was haunted by the now notorious “pork markets speech” at the Conservative Party conference in 2014.

As one MP who backed Ms Truss for the leadership put it: “Her biggest failure has been her inability to communicate her vision coherently.”

But where Ms Truss struggled to communicate with the public, she was slowly building a support base among the party membership. Despite campaigning against Brexit, she became a darling of the Conservative right wing. Her blend of free-market, tax-cutting conservatism and perceived willingness to challenge the status quo made her an unlikely grassroots favourite.

During her campaign to become leader, Ms Truss drew on her “left-wing” childhood growing up near Glasgow and Leeds. At Oxford University she was president of the Liberal Democrats society, and argued for the abolition of the monarchy – and marched against Margaret Thatcher in the 1980s; it was only after graduating that she joined the Conservatives and fought the safe Tory seat of South West Norfolk.

In cabinet, she became known as a grafter and at times a troublemaker, someone who “knows what she wants and gets it”, according to one ally.

Another Truss supporter said she had the “skin of a rhinoceros”. Many were surprised by her promotion to foreign secretary under Boris Johnson; when she became prime minister, she was one of the longest-serving cabinet ministers.

Ms Truss was seen as Mr Johnson’s preferred candidate during the leadership race, backed by some of his closest allies, including Nadine Dorries and Jacob Rees-Mogg. She beat Penny Mordaunt by just eight votes in the final ballot among Tory MPs, securing her place against Rishi Sunak. The Conservative Party membership would decide their fate.

Ms Truss’s path through the membership was rarely in doubt, however. It was only once she got the top job that things began to unravel.

Just two days into her role as prime minister, the death of Queen Elizabeth II shocked the nation. Ten days of mourning followed, and when politics did return, Ms Truss pushed ahead with her sweeping tax-cutting plans during a cost of living crisis.

Some allies still believe her bold vision for growth would have worked – easier to find though are MPs who blame Ms Truss for trashing the Tory record with the economy. What is clear is that her authority never recovered from an extraordinary mini-budget just over two weeks into the job.

First impressions matter and very few I have spoken to are convinced she could have recovered in the eyes of the electorate.

Many see Ms Truss’s sacking of the former chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng as the moment her fate was sealed. The pair were long-time allies, bound together by a shared vision for the economy; but sacking him, before delivering a lacklustre speech, did nothing to appease her now mutinous Tory MPs.

After Mr Kwarteng’s sacking, one MP told me “that was ruthless” adding “she’s toast”. Another said: “Her sacking him shows just how weak she is”. Former chancellor Kenneth Clarke said Mr Kwarteng was a “scapegoat” blamed for carrying out Liz Truss’s instructions.

There was an expectation replacing Mr Kwarteng with Jeremy Hunt would steady the ship, but on his first working day as chancellor he U-turned on the majority of Ms Truss’ economic pledges – made just three weeks before.

Many Tory MPs then saw Mr Hunt as the de facto prime minister as any support she did have slipped away.

As MPs rapidly started to lose faith in their leader, Suella Braverman quit as home secretary for sending a sensitive message to a colleague from her personal email, although many questioned if that was the real reason.

Then parliament descended into chaos on the evening of 19 October, with confusion over whether Labour’s opposition day vote on fracking was actually a vote of confidence in the government and accusations of Tory MPs “manhandling” their colleagues into voting with the government.

The number of Tory MPs calling for Ms Truss then went from a stream to a river.

Asked to describe Liz Truss, an MP who previously served alongside her in cabinet says she is “the sort of person you want to go for a drink with, but not drive you home at the end of the night”.

Today, Liz Truss’s tenure has come to a crashing end at spectacular speed, as Tory MPs assigned another leader to the scrapheap. The party is now searching for its fifth prime minister in just over six years.

UK

Teenage girl killed on M5 in Somerset after getting out of police car named

Published

3 hours ago

November 15, 2024

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Teenage girl killed on M5 in Somerset after getting out of police car named

A teenage girl who was killed after getting out of a police car on the M5 in Somerset has been named.

Tamzin Hall, 17 and from Wellington, was hit by a vehicle that was travelling southbound between junction 24 for Bridgwater and junction 25 for Taunton shortly after 11pm on Monday.

She had exited a police vehicle that had stopped on the northbound side of the motorway while transporting her.

A mandatory referral was made to the Independent Office for Police Conduct, which is now carrying out its own investigation into what happened.

Avon and Somerset Police said: “Our thoughts and sympathies go out to Tamzin’s family for their devastating loss.

“A specially-trained family liaison officer remains in contact with them to keep them updated and to provide support.

“The family have asked for privacy at this difficult time.”

The police watchdog, the IOPC, has been asked to investigate.

In a statement, director David Ford, said: “This was a truly tragic incident and my thoughts are with Tamzin’s family and friends and everyone affected by the events of that evening.

“We are contacting her family to express our sympathies, explain our role, and set out how our investigation will progress. We will keep them fully updated as our investigation continues.”

Paramedics attended the motorway within minutes of the girl being hit but she was pronounced dead at the scene.

The motorway was closed in both directions while investigations took place. It was fully reopened shortly after 11am on Tuesday, Nationals Highways said.

UK

Mohamed al Fayed’s brother Salah also abused women, say female Harrods employees

Published

3 hours ago

November 15, 2024

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Mohamed al Fayed's brother Salah also abused women, say female Harrods employees

A survivors group advocating for women allegedly assaulted by Mohamed al Fayed has said it is “grateful another abuser has been unmasked”, after allegations his brother Salah also participated in the abuse.

Justice for Harrods Survivors says it has “credible evidence” suggesting the sexual abuse allegedly perpetrated at Harrods and the billionaire’s properties “was not limited to Mr al Fayed himself”.

The group’s statement comes after three women told BBC News they were sexually assaulted by al Fayed’s brother, Salah.

One woman said she was raped by Mohamed al Fayed while working at Harrods.

Helen, who has waived her right to anonymity, said she then took a job working for his brother as an escape. She alleges she was drugged and sexually assaulted while working at Salah’s home on Park Lane, London.

Two other women have told the BBC they were taken to Monaco and the South of France, where Salah sexually abused them.

The Justice for Harrod Survivors representatives said: “We are proud to support the survivors of Salah Fayed’s abuse and are committed to achieving justice for them, no matter what it takes.”

The group added it “looks forward to the others on whom we have credible evidence – whether abusers themselves or enablers facilitating that abuse – being exposed in due course”.

Salah was one of the three Fayed brothers who co-owned Harrods.

The business, which was sold to Qatar Holdings when Mohamed al Fayed retired in 2010, has said it “supports the bravery of these women in coming forward”.

A statement issued by the famous store on Thursday evening continued: “We encourage these survivors to come forward and make their claims to the Harrods scheme, where they can apply for compensation, as well as support from a counselling perspective and through an independent survivor advocate.

“We also hope that they are looking at every appropriate avenue to them in their pursuit of justice, whether that be Harrods, the police or the Fayed family and estate.”

The Justice for Harrods Survivors group previously said more than 400 people had contacted them regarding accusations about Mohamed al Fayed, who died last year.

One of those alleged to have been abused is Bianca Gascoigne, the daughter of former England player Paul.

Speaking to Sky News in October, Gascoigne said she was groomed and sexually assaulted by al Fayed when she worked at Harrods as a teenager.

UK

Wes Streeting ‘crossed the line’ by opposing assisted dying in public, says Labour peer Harriet Harman

Published

3 hours ago

November 15, 2024

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Wes Streeting 'crossed the line' by opposing assisted dying in public, says Labour peer Harriet Harman

Wes Streeting “crossed the line” by opposing assisted dying in public and the argument shouldn’t “come down to resources”, a Labour peer has said.

Speaking on Sky News’ Electoral Dysfunction podcast, Baroness Harriet Harman criticised the health secretary for revealing how he is going to vote on the matter when it comes before parliament later this month.

MPs are being given a free vote, meaning they can side with their conscience and not party lines, so the government is supposed to be staying neutral.

But Mr Streeting has made clear he will vote against legalising assisted dying, citing concerns end-of-life care is not good enough for people to make an informed choice, and that some could feel pressured into the decision to save the NHS money.

He has also ordered a review into the potential costs of changing the law, warning it could come at the expense of other NHS services if implemented.

Baroness Harman said Mr Streeting has “crossed the line in two ways”.

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“He should not have said how he was going to vote, because that breaches neutrality and sends a signal,” she said.

“And secondly… he’s said the problem is that it will cost money to bring in an assisted dying measure, and therefore he will have to cut other services.

“But paradoxically, he also said it would be a slippery slope because people will be forced to bring about their own death in order to save the NHS money. Well, it can’t be doing both things.

“It can’t be both costing the NHS money and saving the NHS money.”

Baroness Harman said the argument “should not come down to resources” as it is a “huge moral issue” affecting “only a tiny number of people”.

She added that people should not mistake Mr Streeting for being “a kind of proxy for Keir Starmer”.

“The government is genuinely neutral and all of those backbenchers, they can vote whichever way they want,” she added.

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has previously expressed support for assisted dying, but it is not clear how he intends to vote on the issue or if he will make his decision public ahead of time.

The cabinet has varying views on the topic, with the likes of Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood siding with Mr Streeting in her opposition but Energy Secretary Ed Miliband being for it.

The Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill is being championed by Labour backbencher Kim Leadbeater, who wants to give people with six months left to live the choice to end their lives.

Under her proposals, two independent doctors must confirm a patient is eligible for assisted dying and a High Court judge must give their approval.

The bill will also include punishments of up to 14 years in prison for those who break the law, including coercing someone into ending their own life.

MPs will debate and vote on the legislation on 29 November, in what will be the first Commons vote on assisted dying since 2015, when the proposal was defeated.