Liz Truss is to become the UK's next Prime Minister after winning the Tory leadership party against Rishi Sunak.
Here is a breakdown of who she is and where stands on some of the UK's biggest commitments and issues. There is a lot of talk about whether Mary Elizabeth Truss is a better fit than Boris Johnson for the UK and for the Conservative party. She has changed a lot over the years as she was once a young Liberal Democrat activist who marched against Margaret Thatcher.
She is now a Brexit- backing right-wing politician who claims to be the keeper of the 'Thatcherite flame'.
READ MORE: We have a new Prime Minister but Merseyside won't be feeling any more hopeful
Brexit
Ms Truss has a dedicated history of U-turns with Brexit being no exception. The ex-Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs has a voting recording showing she consistently voted for UK military intervention overseas. This includes action against Islamic State (Isis).
Her voting history also shows she voted in favour of a referendum on EU membership in 2016. She then campaigned to remain and claimed "farmers are better off remaining in a reformed EU".
The 47-year-old then famously u-turned on the decision in late 2017. She claimed "it was more positive, so the facts have changed and I've changed my mind". Further down the line she voted against EU integration and against the right to remain EU nationals living in the UK.
Climate change
According to They Work For You, Ms Truss has voted against policies tackling climate change. She has promised to further extract fossil fuel resources in the North sea stating it is "crucial to building energy security".
During her leadership campaign she also promised to explore fracking and scrap green levies on energy bills. This green levy goes towards paying for clean power but it currently adds £153 to the average annual energy bill. She has also spoken negatively about solar panels.
Ms Truss promised to "double down" on the UK's goal of achieving net zero on greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.
COVID and the NHS
Ms Truss has a history of making controversial comments on the NHS and more recently vowed to never impose another lockdown if she became the new PM and leader of the Conservative party.
She claimed to question the coronavirus measures brought in from March, 2020 and how in hindsight the government "did too much" in shutting down England. She claims closing schools was "draconian".
Her voting record also shows she generally voted in favour of GPs buying services on behalf of their patients and against restricting the provisions to private patients by the NHS.
The ex-trade secretary also voted against smoking bans and was not present for the vote on allowing terminally ill people to have assistance to end their life.
Ukraine
The ex-foreign minister doesn't seem to shy away from upsetting international allies but has backed Boris' strong support for Ukraine. She supported the hardline approach toward Russia's invasion of Ukraine and fully backed Boris' decision to send heavy weaponry.
Following Boris' speech outside No. 10 this morning he campaigned his continuing support and potentially hinted at the continuation of this under a Truss government.
The mother-of-two is a friend of the Zelensky government. Ukraine's President urged her this morning to work with them to help "thwart" Russia during his daily address. Vladimir Zelensky said: "We in Ukraine know her well. She has always been on the bright side of European politics."
Profile
- Place of birth: Oxford
- Home: London and Norfolk
- Education: Roundhay School (Leeds) and Oxford University
- Parliamentary constituency: South West Norfolk
- Family: Married to Hugh O'Leary, Parents are John Kenneth and Priscilla Mary Truss
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