Ms Truss’ own MPs have warned that the new Conservative leader must not leave the center or surround herself with a close circle of right-wing allies ahead of a general election. A former minister said: “I suspect he will go with a fairly hard Brexit, right-wing, Thatcher tribute government.” Liz Truss is the favorite to succeed Boris Johnson as leader of the Conservative Party and prime minister (Jacob King/PA) (PA wire) The calls came as union leaders urged Ms Truss to “clean up” her plans for workers’ rights after reports she wants to review EU-sourced protections. The next prime minister faces an uphill battle to unite the Conservative party after a bitter leadership contest marked by a series of bitter blue-on-blue attacks. There are concerns that Mrs Truss will be a Margaret Thatcher tribute act (Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.) Just last month Mr Sunak warned that Mrs Truss’s plans would put vulnerable people at risk of “genuine impoverishment”, while her former cabinet colleague Michael Gove described them as a “holiday from reality”. Within weeks of entering Downing Street, her government is expected to present an emergency budget that will include its controversial planned tax cuts, which many Tory MPs fear will fuel already rising inflation. Others worry that her anti-leaflet comments, made early in the election campaign, mean that any support offered to households with the cost of living this winter will do little to ease the forecast of a “frightening” fall in living standards. Despite the early promise, Rishi Sunak is widely expected to miss out on Monday (PA wire) MPs urged her to appoint a cabinet representing the different “wings” of the party. “Belief matters, but so does skill,” said one. Kevin Hollinrake, a Sunak supporter and member of the Commons Treasury Select Committee, warned Ms Truss against cutting taxes at the same time as failing to provide enough support for households who will suffer this winter. He said the new prime minister should not “drag to the right” and should remember that parties win elections from the center. When it came to the leadership election, he said, “you’re playing to the crowd a bit in these contests, but what you don’t want is to go on that and think it’s just about the (Tory) members. (Your policies must) be mainstream. This is what my constituents stand for. If they drag us right, we’re in serious trouble.” Boris Johnson will step down as prime minister on Monday after three years (PA wire) A former minister has predicted Ms Truss will struggle to unite the party – at a time when some forecasts suggest inflation could reach as high as 18 per cent – when many Tory MPs believe her plan for tax cuts and increases spending will “ignite” the problem. But a backer from a red wall seat, who also backed Mr Sunak, predicted Tory MPs would “back” whoever the new Prime Minister is. “It just gives us something to fall back on. “ The winner of the long-running leadership contest is set to be revealed at noon on Monday. But they will be called upon to form a government the following day, having traveled to Balmoral to meet the Queen. And only when they return to London later that day are they expected to reshuffle and make appointments to their cabinet. In a review of workers’ rights, TUC General Secretary Frances O’Grady said: “Liz Truss’ number one priority must be to help families pay their bills this winter. “Threatening workers’ hard-won rights is the last thing the country and workers need. She needs to make her plans clear.”
