Liz Truss
Taxes: Mrs Truss draws up Thatcher plans to give No 10 more control over the economy, The Telegraph understands. The Foreign Secretary has announced £30 billion worth of tax cuts, which he will implement “from day one”. It will reverse a planned six per cent rise in corporation tax and roll back a rise in national insurance that came into effect in April. It will also remove green charges on energy bills for two years. She also said she would review inheritance tax as part of a general review of Britain’s tax system.
Borrowing: She said she plans to pay for tax cuts by putting the Covid debt on a “longer-term footing,” similar to the nation’s military debt of the 1940s. This would potentially involve refinancing the £311 billion borrowed during the pandemic so that it is repaid over a much longer period.
Net zero: Ms Truss supported the target in general, but said “we need to get to net zero in a way that doesn’t hurt businesses or consumers”. She is “very supportive of using gas as a transition fuel” and has proposed ending the ban on fracking so it can continue in areas where there is local consent.
Trans: Foreign Secretary lashed out at ‘absurd pronoun debate’ and as Equality Minister scraps plans to reform law so people can change gender without medical diagnosis. She supported feminist campaigners, including Labor MP Rosie Duffield for her statement that “only women have cervixes”.
Brexit: She vociferously backed Remain in the 2016 referendum but has since become one of the staunchest Brexiteers in government. She pushed through plans to scrap the Northern Ireland Protocol and said she now regrets voting to remain in the EU. When challenged by Mr Sunak during a televised debate on why she voted Remain in 2016, she said: “Maybe I’ve learned from that.”
Foreign workers: Mrs Truss has proposed allowing thousands more foreign workers to come to the UK each year to take on temporary farm work such as fruit picking. It wants a “short-term extension” of what is known as the seasonal workers scheme. The current scheme allows around 40,000 overseas workers to come to the UK for up to six months each year to work in horticulture. It should end in 2024.
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