U.K. Prime Minister Liz Truss resigns after economic plan sparked turmoil
NBCNov 24, 2022
The Facts
On Thursday, Liz Truss announced her resignation as UK prime minister and Conservative party leader. Coming just 45 days after she took over the role from Boris Johnson, she is the shortest-serving PM in British history.
Speaking outside Downing Street, Truss stated: "I came into office at a time of great economic and international instability." After touching on the cost of living crisis and her attempt to implement "low-tax, high-growth" economic policies, Truss confirmed that she couldn't "deliver the mandate" on which the Conservative Party had elected her.
The Spin
Right narrative
Truss's premiership has been doomed for a while — it's a relief that by resigning power so swiftly, she has offered the Conservative party a chance to unite around a new leader. The only way forward is for Tory MPs to stabilize around a mandate of fiscal discipline to create a clear dividing line from Labour.
Left narrative
This is a shambolic end to an even more catastrophic tenure of Conservative leadership. The British people have faced 12 years of Tory PMs — now the markets are in chaos, the cost of living crisis is worsening, and, as usual, it will be the poorest in society paying the price for the failures of the political classes. The UK needs a general election and a Labour government.