Evening summary
- The second one-to-one televised debate between Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak, organised by TalkTV and the Sun, was halted midway after the presenter, TalkTV’s political editor Kate McCann, fainted on the set. She is now fine, TalkTV says.
- Truss, the foreign secretary and favourite in the Tory leadership contest, said in the debate that the tax rises implemented by Sunak as chancellor were “morally wrong”. She said:
What has happened is that the tax has been raised on families through national insurance so that they are having to pay more money to the Treasury. I do think it is morally wrong at this moment when families are struggling to pay for food that we have put up taxes on ordinary people when we said we wouldn’t in our manifesto and when we didn’t need to do so.
In response, Sunak said it was morally wrong to raise borrowing, which would have to be paid off by future generations. He said:
What’s morally wrong is asking our children and grandchildren to pick up the tab for the bills that we are not prepared to meet.
- Truss said that she would use general taxation to fill the gap in NHS funding left by her plan to reverse Sunak’s national insurance increase, which funded the health and social care levy. She said:
I am committed to the extra money that was announced for the NHS. It is needed to deal with the backlog and I would fund that money out of general taxation.
- Truss suggested earlier in the day that Sunak’s economic policies would be a “disaster” for Britain. (See 3.59pm.)
- A YouGov poll of Tory members suggests they thought Truss comfortably won last night’s BBC debate. In the poll she was seen as outperforming Sunak on every measure, except who looked most prime ministerial, where Sunak was just one point ahead. (See 1.13pm.)
Updated
Politicians are sending their best wishes to Kate McCann.
From Amanda Milling, the Foreign Office minister
Hope @KateEMcCann is ok. She was doing a brilliant job. Get well soon!
— Amanda Milling (@amandamilling) July 26, 2022
From Lord Falconer, the Labour former lord chancellor
Very best wishes to Kate McCann. She hosted the debate brilliantly before it stopped. Had authority and forced both contenders to focus on their own answers. The extraordinary summer of 2022 makes another superstar.
— Charlie Falconer (@LordCFalconer) July 26, 2022
From Sir Robert Buckland, the Welsh secretary
Hope @KateEMcCann is ok #thesun #LeadershipDebate
— Robert Buckland (@RobertBuckland) July 26, 2022
