British politics has this past month been an exercise in torture. Rishi Sunak’s bid for Downing Street is like that of a boxer told at the start of a contest that the judges have already decided he has lost. He has had to fight on while his opponent, Liz Truss, goes on a victory tour. The resulting campaign has so damaged both candidates that Tory members – and the public in general – would apparently prefer even the discredited Boris Johnson as prime minister. This is the same Johnson who, on resigning two months ago, had an approval rating of just 19%.
Assuming Sunak does indeed lose next week, there remains one thing he could do both for his country and for himself. He could publicly renounce his attacks on Truss, acknowledge her as his party’s chosen leader and offer at once to serve under her. Given their disagreement on economic policy, he might ask to go “offshore” to the Foreign Office in return for a public declaration of loyalty.
