UK: PM-designate Truss to meet Queen

London, Sep 06: Liz Truss is set become British Prime Minister on Tuesday.

She will travel to see Queen Elizabeth in Scotland and then appoint a new cabinet. Outgoing Prime Minister Boris Johnson is also set to head to Scotland to offer his resignation.

Truss defeated rival Rishi Sunak in a vote of Conservative Party members on Monday.

What are Truss' plans for when she takes office?

The Truss government will need to deal with an energy crisis and soaring inflation, driven by Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the COVID-19 pandemic and Brexit.

UK inflation has risen above 10% for the first time in four decades, and the Bank of England forecasts it will reach 13.3% in October. The bank said that Britain could enter recession by the end of the year.

Truss says that her priority is cutting taxes and reducing regulations to fuel growth.

Household bills are due to jump by 80% in October, or triple the cost of a year ago.

During her leadership campaign, Truss promised help for people struggling to pay their bills, but did not give further details.

In a speech on Monday, Truss promised to help Britain weather the economic crisis.

"Thank you for putting your trust in me to lead and deliver for our great country," Truss said.

"I will take bold action to get all of us through these tough times, grow our economy, and unleash the United Kingdom's potential."

Truss will continue British support to Ukraine, and has promised to increase British defense spending to just over 2-3% of GDP. She has said that her first phone call with a world leader will be with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

Truss' cabinet

Kwasi Kwarteng is likely to be named Treasury chief under Truss. Kwarteng previously served as Johnson's business secretary.

Writing in the Financial Times on Monday, Kwarteng said a Truss government would "take immediate action to get families and businesses through this winter and the next."

Home Secretary Priti Patel and Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries stepped down ahead of the cabinet reshuffle. Truss had offered Dorries to stay in her post, the Daily Mail reported.

Johnson bids farewell

Outgoing Prime Minister Boris Johnson gave his final Downing Street speech on Tuesday before heading to Scotland to offer his resignation to Queen Elizabeth.

Johnson said that his successor would do "everything" to get people through the crisis.

He said "it's time for politics to be over," in an apparent reference to the election for leadership of his party. He urged Conservatives to "get behind Liz Truss." He vowed that he would support Truss "every step of the way."

Johnson said that Britain would "come out stronger" from economic downturn.

"This is a tough time for the economy," he said.

"This is a tough time for families up and down the country. We can and we will get through it, we will come out stronger the other side."

Source: DW