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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
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Rafael Behr

The spirit of Liz Truss, ridiculous but relentless, still stalks British politics

Liz Truss at the podium
Liz Truss speaks at the Conservative Political Action Conference in Budapest, Hungary, 30 May 2025. Photograph: Noemi Bruzak/EPA

We need to talk about Liz Truss, although there are reasons not to bother. The prime minister who failed faster than any previous holder of the office has much to say about her dismal record, but nothing insightful. She cuts a pitiful spectacle padding out the schedule at rightwing conferences, chasing attention and relevance with an addict’s fervour.

Last week, Truss was at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in Budapest, sharing the big lesson she learned in government. It was that British institutions have been captured by a leftist doctrine and that they “hate western civilisation”. She couldn’t possibly counter this threat from No 10 because supposedly the real power was wielded by a well-financed “globalist network”, operating through such engines of anti-democratic subterfuge as the International Monetary Fund and the World Health Organization.

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