Sunak Starts Leadership With Warning: ‘Difficult Decisions to Come’

Rishi Sunak, UK prime minister, delivers his first speech after becoming prime minister ou
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Oliver JJ Lane

The warning of Britain’s finance-minister-cum-political-assassin Jeremy Hunt that new tax rises are on the way seems to have been underlined by new Prime Minister Rishi Sunak in his first address to the country, warning of “difficult decisions to come”.

Speaking to the country from the steps of Downing Street, his new official residence and political office, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak laid out his new government’s intentions minutes after departing Buckingham Palace, where he was appointed by the King during a near-40-minute-long meeting.

In a distinct departure from his predecessor Liz Truss, who spoke of growing the economy, Sunak was downbeat in his delivery, speaking of “a profound economic crisis”.

Sunak’s rapid elevation to the top political job in the United Kingdom — he only became a member of Parliament seven years ago — was shepherded in by Jeremy Hunt, the man some called the de-facto Prime Minister for his brutally efficient takeover of the Truss government. After he cancelled almost all of Truss’s planned tax cuts, Hunt said there were tax rises to come.

Implicitly confirming this Sunak said from the podium this morning that: “I will place economic stability and confidence at the heart of this government’s agenda. This will mean difficult decisions to come.”

Quite possibly, this will mean long-overdue cuts to the state as well. His remark that “the government I lead will not leave the next generation, your children and grandchildren, with a debt to settle that we were too weak to pay ourselves” strongly suggests he will be slashing borrowing to fund day-to-day government spending, which will certainly mean considerable tax rises, cuts in government, or both.

Making a stab at conciliation with those who did not back him in the leadership challenge, Sunak spoke of his admiration for his predecessors in the past two months Boris Johnson and Liz Truss, but couldn’t stop short of criticism. He said: “some mistakes were made. Not born of ill will or bad intention – quite the opposite in fact. But mistakes, nonetheless.”

Sunak said he would fix those mistakes, promising compassion but tempering that by remarking: “There are always limits, more so now than ever.”

Given the considerable discussion in the UK establishment media and social media about the perceived need for a snap election now — not a constitutional necessity in the British Westminster System, where Prime Ministers are not generally considered to have personal mandates — it is not surprising, perhaps, that Sunak also touched on that subject.

Reflecting on the reality of the British constitution, Sunak asserted that the victory of the 2019 general election — which gave the Conservatives a historic governing majority, not that they’ve done anything meaningful with it — was not the property of any one person, but rather was linked to the manifesto, which he said he would work to deliver.

Sunak will now appoint his new government. No new ministers yet, but plenty of firings and resignations from Westminster with known names from the Johnson era like Jacob Rees-Mogg already out of government.

Read Rishi Sunak’s first speech as Prime Minister: 

Good morning. I’ve just been to Buckingham Palace and accepted His Majesty the King’s invitation to form a government in his name. It is only right to explain why I’m standing here as your new Prime Minister.

Right now, our country is facing a profound economic crisis. The aftermath of Covid still lingers. Putin’s war in Ukraine has destabilised energy markets and supply chains the world over.

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. I admired her restlessness to create change – but some mistakes were made. Not born of ill-will or bad intention – quite the opposite in fact. But mistakes, nonetheless. And I have been elected as leader of my party and your Prime Minister, in part, to fix them. And that work begins immediately. I will place economic stability and confidence at the heart of this government’s agenda.

This will mean difficult decisions to come.

But you saw me during Covid doing everything I could to protect people and businesses with schemes like furlough. There are always limits, more so now than ever. But I promise you this, I will bring that same compassion to the challenges we face today. The government I lead will not leave the next generation, your children and grandchildren, with a debt to settle that we were too weak to pay ourselves.

I will unite our country not with words, but with action. I will work day-in and day-out to deliver for you. 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. And I treasure his warmth and generosity of spirit. And I know he would agree that the mandate my party earned in 2019 is not the sole property of any one individual. It is a mandate that belongs to and unites all of us. And the heart of that mandate is our manifesto. I will deliver on its promise.

A stronger NHS, better schools, safer streets, control of our borders, protecting our environment, supporting our Armed Forces, levelling up and building an economy that embraces the opportunities of Brexit, where businesses invest, innovate, and create jobs.

I understand how difficult this moment is. After the billions of pounds it cost us to combat Covid, after all the dislocation that caused in the midst of a terrible war that must be seen successfully to its conclusions, I fully appreciate how hard things are. And I understand to that I have work to do to restore trust after all that has happened.

All I can say is that I am not daunted. I know the high office I have accepted, and I hope to live up to its demands. But when the opportunity to serve comes along, you cannot question the moment, only your willingness.

So, I stand here before you ready to lead our country into the future, to put your needs above politics, to reach out and build a government that represents the very best traditions of my party. Together, we can achieve incredible things.

We will create a future worthy of the sacrifices so many have made and fill tomorrow, and every day thereafter, with hope. Thank you.

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