Rishi Sunak will become the UK’s new prime minister after meeting King Charles III
(Picture: AFP via Getty Images)Rishi Sunak has won the race to become the next prime minister of the UK, after rival Penny Mordaunt pulled out of the Conservative Party leadership contest at the last minute.
It marks the latest in a whirlwind of events in British politics - but for Mr Sunak things are only just beginning.
Here’s what to expect in the coming days...
When will Rishi Sunak become prime minister?
Mr Sunak may have won the Tory leadership race but is not yet officially prime minister.
As head of state, it is King Charles III’s duty to appoint the head of His Majesty’s Government.
It is understood the King is travelling to London on Monday afternoon from the private royal estate of Sandringham.
He is not expected to meet with Mr Sunak on Monday, but is set to instead host audiences at Buckingham Palace within the next few days. A timetable for these meetings is yet to be confirmed.
First, the King will meet with outgoing prime minister Liz Truss, who will formally tender her resignation. She is likely to be joined at the end of the meeting by her husband Hugh O’Leary.
The King will then hold an audience with Mr Sunak, offering him the opportunity to form a new government and become premier of the UK.
After the new leader of the country has been appointed, the Court Circular will record that “the prime minister kissed hands on appointment”. This is not literally the case, and is usually instead a handshake.
Addressing the nation
Mr Sunak addressed the nation on Monday afternoon for the first time since winning the leadership race. He acknowledged the UK’s difficult economic position and pledged to work “day in, day out” for the country.
He is likely to make another address once he has officially become prime minister after meeting with the King.
No time or date has yet been set for this, but it is expected to take place outside No 10 Downing Street shortly after he has formally become prime minister. The address will lay out Mr Sunak’s plans and hopes for his premiership.
Liz Truss was made prime minister by the late Queen Elizabeth II at Balmoral on September 6. She gave her first address to the nation upon her return to London that afternoon.
Forming his Government
Mr Sunak will soon begin appointing his Cabinet.
All eyes will be on the new prime minister, with many anxious to know if he can succeed in uniting a fractured Conservative Party and help to bring stability to the UK Government.
There are expectations he is likely to draw MPs from various factions of the Conservative Party in a bid to bring unity - and could find a senior position for leadership rival Penny Mordaunt.
What will the new leadership mean for the budget and Government policy?
Mr Sunak will be taking office at a time of great fiscal turmoil - meaning all eyes will be on his plans to help balance the books and restore confidence in the UK’s economy.
During his first speech to the nation on Monday afternoon, he acknowledged the country is facing a “profound economic challenge”.
The latest Tory leadership race focused almost entirely on personality rather than policy, meaning Mr Sunak has said little about how he might address the issues that followed the disastrous mini-budget hatched under Ms Truss and former chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng.
The United Kingdom is a great country but we face a profound economic crisis.
— Rishi Sunak (@RishiSunak) October 23, 2022
That’s why I am standing to be Leader of the Conservative Party and your next Prime Minister.
I want to fix our economy, unite our Party and deliver for our country. pic.twitter.com/BppG9CytAK
But promises he made over the summer during the previous leadership contest provide some clues to what he might do now he has won the battle for No 10.
The former chancellor’s commitment to balancing the books is well known. It is what led to him increasing the tax burden to its highest level for 70 years, despite his personal preference for lower taxes.
He is therefore unlikely to deviate from the tax U-turns set out by Chancellor Jeremy Hunt on October 17, especially as he had already committed to some policies such as increasing corporation tax to 25 per cent.
On spending, Mr Sunak’s instincts are likely to align with the spending cuts already trailed by Mr Hunt.
He was already unenthusiastic about large-scale spending commitments, saying in his first leadership bid that the Government needed to “return to traditional Conservative economic values” rather than “fairytales”.
On health and social care, Mr Sunak’s main policy during the last leadership election was bringing in a £10 penalty for missing appointments as part of efforts to tackle the NHS backlog.
He also promised a “backlogs taskforce” to co-ordinate that effort and an expansion of the number of overseas doctors and nurses brought in to work in the NHS.
It remains unknown whether he will seek to reintroduce the increase in national insurance that he brought in as chancellor but which was subsequently scrapped by Ms Truss.
His book-balancing instincts may push him towards doing so, but it would be the third change to that tax in a year and Mr Hunt said on October 17 that it would remain scrapped.
Mr Sunak’s immigration policies during the last leadership election focused entirely on curbing Channel crossings and toughening up asylum rules.
This included pushing ahead with the Government’s plan to deport asylum seekers to Rwanda, tightening the definition of who can claim asylum, and increasing resources for dealing with the backlog of asylum applicants.
In contrast, he said little about what he would do regarding work visas as the UK continues to face a labour shortage.
But the former chancellor did say he wants to be “pragmatic” and ensure immigration policy supports economic growth. This suggests a more liberal approach to work visas than that favoured by the likes of former home secretary Suella Braverman.
During the last leadership election, Mr Sunak said he was committed to protecting the green belt and would stop local authorities attempting to release protected land for development.
This is likely to mean the end of the Government’s 2019 manifesto commitment to build 300,000 homes a year and a move away from “top-down targets”.
Mr Sunak has said he remains committed to the UK’s target of reaching net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.
But his plans are more in line with those of Ms Truss than Boris Johnson, as he backs offshore wind, rooftop solar, and nuclear power, but appears less keen on solar farms and onshore wind.
During the last leadership election, he said he wanted to see the UK become energy-independent by 2045. However, he also said he would uphold the ban on building new onshore wind farms and vowed to prevent farmland being covered in solar panels.
He also backed lifting the moratorium on fracking, providing it has local support. This is a policy that Ms Truss supported, but fracking has proved a contentious issue for Tory MPs and could therefore be a lower priority for Mr Sunak.
As chancellor, Mr Sunak cut VAT on home insulation measures and, during the summer leadership campaign, he said he would “embark on a programme of massive energy efficiency upgrades in people’s homes”.
This would be a point of difference between Mr Sunak and Ms Truss, who largely avoided discussing insulation during her tenure. But it will also cost money, leaving further difficult choices to be made in Mr Sunak’s first budget.
