Former British finance minister Rishi Sunak took office as prime minister today, after King Charles III formally asked him to do so.
Sunak, the first non-white British prime minister, met today in Buckingham Palace with the British monarch, who had previously accepted the resignation of former prime minister Liz Truss.
The British king has the ceremonial role of formally appointing the head of government, who first secures the support of a majority of MPs.
The 42-year-old Sunak, the youngest British leader in more than 200 years, is expected to begin appointing cabinet members today who will have to deal with the political and economic crisis in the country. After taking office, Sunak said in front of the government headquarters in London that his predecessor "made mistakes" and promised that "economic stability and trust" will be at the center of his agenda.
Sunak, who was the finance minister for two years, until July, said that he would fight with dedication against the "deep economic crisis" and that his government would be distinguished by "integrity, professionalism and responsibility".
Sunak must turn his attention to containing the economic crisis which has left millions of Britons struggling to pay for basic expenses, food and bills.
He was elected yesterday as the leader of the ruling Conservative Party, which is trying to stabilize the country's economy and stop the decline in its own popularity after the short term of Liz Truss.
Tras resigned on October 20, after 45 tumultuous days at the head of government, during which her policies caused turmoil in financial markets, and she faced a rebellion in her own party. Tras was appointed prime minister on September 6 by Queen Elizabeth II, who died two days later.
Sunak's first priorities will be to appoint ministers and prepare a budget that will show how the government plans to come up with the billions of pounds needed to plug the fiscal hole created by rising inflation and a sluggish economy, and made worse by Liz Truss's economic experiments.
The budget, which will include tax increases and spending cuts, should be presented to MPs by Finance Minister Jeremy Hunt on Monday, if Sunak decides to keep him in that position.
Sunak was elected leader of the conservatives because he is the only politician who secured the support of 100 deputies, which was necessary for candidacy. Sunak's rival Penny Mordant, who could be a minister in his government, failed to do so, as did former Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
Sunak became prime minister just seven weeks after losing to Liz Truss in the internal party elections in the Conservative Party, organized to elect a leader after Boris Johnson's resignation from the government and party.
In that election held over the summer, most members of the Conservative Party opted for Liz Truss's plan, which entailed a big cut in corporate taxes, ignoring Sunak's warnings that inflation must be curbed.
Tras admitted last Sunday that she was unable to deliver on her plans, but only after her economic experiment caused market chaos and worsened inflation at a time when millions of Britons were struggling with rising borrowing costs and rising energy and food prices.
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