United Kingdom’s Prime Minister Lizz Truss, recently made history by being the third woman to occupy the highest ranking government office in Britain.
She, alongside Margaret Thatcher and Theresa May, are the only women who have held the prestigious position, once headed by historical figures such as Winston Churchill.
Formerly the foreign secretary, Ms Truss won the Conservative Party Leadership contest after beating former treasury chief Rishi Sunak. She was, thereafter, formally appointed by the late Queen Elizabeth II in Balmoral, Scotland.
Unlike Margaret Thatcher who was elected after she led the Conservative Party to win the 1979 General Election, the new British Prime Minister was elected by her party members and not the wider electorate.
In Britain’s parliamentary system of government, after a party leader resigns, the ruling party is allowed to hold internal elections to elect a party leader who would consequently become prime minister.
Ms Truss has taken the helm amidst the high-cost of living and energy crises that have been grappling Britain. Nonetheless, her party seems to have banked on her formidable background in leadership and politics.
Born to a mathematics professor and mother nurse, Ms Truss was originally a liberal democrat who used to even participate in nuclear disarmament protests.
At Oxford University, she was President of the Liberal Democrats and at some point advocated for the abolishment of the monarchy.
Her standpoint, however, changed after completing her undergraduate degree in philosophy, politics and economics from Merton College, Oxford. She joined the Conservative Party, a radical shift from her formative days when she was a staunch Liberal.
It was in 2001 that Ms Truss plunged herself into active British politics by vying for Member of Parliament for Hemsworth, West Yorkshire but unfortunately, lost. In 2005, again, she lost the MP race for Calder Valley, also in West Yorkshire.
Things started looking up in 2006 when she was elected Greenwich councillor and after the 2010 British General election, Ms Truss was elected to parliament for South West Norfolk, which remains her constituency to date.
She continued to rise through political ranks by serving in three Prime Ministers’ cabinets. In 2014 (under David Cameron) she was appointed the environment secretary and, thereafter, became the first woman Lord Chancellor when Theresa May (the Prime Minister in 2016) appointed her Secretary of State for Justice and Lord Chancellor following Mr Cameron’s resignation.
Former British Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, again promoted her in 2021 to foreign secretary, a position she held until she became the Prime Minister. She succeeded Mr Johnson who announced his resignation after a string of controversies including the Partygate Scandal where it was alleged that parties were held at Downing Street while the country was under lockdown.
Like her forerunners; Ms Thatcher who became Prime Minister during the 1980s recession and Theresa May who was Prime Minister during United Kingdom’s withdrawal from the European Union (Brexit), Ms Truss’ plate is equally -if not more- full.
Britain is currently facing an energy crisis, skyrocketing inflation and according to the Bank of England, the longest economic recession since the global financial crisis of 2008.
Ms Truss campaigned on the promise of cutting taxes thereby reducing the cost of living. This, she insisted would help people meet the soaring energy bills. However, her tax-cut plans sent the British pound plummeting, forcing her to take a U-turn, a mere 10 days after announcing it.
For a prime minister in such an economic climate, Ms Truss, the third woman to occupy such a coveted office, couldn’t be more under the microscope as she implements her policies.
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