Politics
— Ambition, a powerful force, drives Donald Trump’s controversial return and Liz Truss’s misjudged rise. It highlights the need for a balanced ambition that prioritises purpose and the common good over reckless self-interest.
Liz Truss
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party for 50 days, between 6 September 2022 and 25 September 2022.
2024 General Election
— Democracies, despite their mistakes, excel at correcting them. The 2024 British general election’s defeat of the Conservatives highlights democracy’s power to renew. New Prime Minister Keir Starmer must now restore government integrity and address national damage.
UK Politics
— The Conservative Party, established in 1832, was declared dead on 5 July 2024. Once popular and competent, it just couldn’t prevent universal suffrage, faced internal divisions, COVID-related greed, and simply declined after Brexit.
COMMENT
— Freedom of Information in the UK is declining, with full request approvals dropping from 55% in 2013 to 34% recently. Successive Conservative governments have increasingly restricted it, undermining transparency and accountability.
UK Politics
— Rishi Sunak faces a potential Tory leadership challenge as 52 MPs could trigger a confidence vote. Leadership rules emphasize parliamentary support, yet member ballots could shift influence, reflecting broader legitimacy and control mechanisms within the Conservative Party.
UK Politics
— Liz Truss’s short 49-day tenure as UK Prime Minister is marked by her controversial £45 billion “mini-budget” that led to economic turmoil, prompting her resignation. Despite criticism, she remains defiant, blaming independent institutions for hindering radical economic reforms.
Long-Read
— Brexit was expected to end the blame on the EU and foster political accountability. Yet, Brexiters like Truss, Anderson, and Braverman shift blame to globalism and wokeism, fuelling radical Brexitism, seeking new targets, and desiring to “smash the system.”
UK Politics
— Conservative MPs, like Liz Truss and Lee Anderson, use conspiracy rhetoric to appeal to audiences and build political brand, diverting attention from governance records. Truss’s blaming shadowy forces for her prime ministerial failures follows a familiar pattern.
UK Politics
— Recent YouGov surveys illuminate public perception of UK Conservative Prime Ministers since 2010. Liz Truss is heavily criticised, Boris Johnson polarises, while Rishi Sunak’s leadership receives mixed responses.
COMMENT
— Javier Milei, Argentina’s president-elect, resembles Britain’s short-serving PM Liz Truss in their shared goals of low taxes and a reduced state. Both faced economic challenges, raising concerns about the potential consequences of their radical policies.
Long-Read
— The influence of Brexit on the Conservative Party has bolstered populism and pushed the party further from moderate conservatism towards the influence of Nigel Farage, which is characterised by detachment from reality and ideological purity.
OPINION
— The Conservative Party conference has revealed the Tories’ embrace of conspiracy theories, extremism, and threats to democracy. The Tory party is moving towards far-right ideologies, attacking trans people and migrants, posing a significant danger to democracy.
UK Politics
— The prime minister has acknowledged that a narrative of national decline is setting in – but he has been unable to disentangle himself from it.
UK Politics
— The prime minister is popular, his party is not. Which is more important as we head towards the next election?
UK Politics
— Former national leaders Boris Johnson, Liz Truss, and Theresa May have all stepped back from power, but remain active in their respective backbenches.
Long-Read
— Professor Chris Grey’s Brexit analysis – placing Truss’s ‘essay’ and Sunak’s many woes in the wider context of a ‘Brexitist’ capture of conservatism, and how that could lead to a re-alignment of the political right.
