#BTEditorial – Lessons to learn from Britain’s political turmoil

“I cannot deliver the mandate on which I was elected by the Conservative Party. I have, therefore, spoken to His Majesty the King to announce that I am resigning as leader of the Conservative Party.” – Outgoing British Prime Minister Liz Truss.

Great Britain is at a crossroads and how they navigate in the coming weeks and months will determine whether or not it will hold on to its “great” name and status.

After only 45 days in office, Liz Truss resigned on Thursday, October 20, becoming the shortest-serving PM in the history of the UK.

Truss came to office after former prime minister Boris Johnson’s government fell apart when it was revealed that he held a series of parties in government buildings at a time when people in Britain were barred from mingling with friends and family or even visiting dying relatives, at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.   

Truss was brought down by what is widely perceived as her incompetence, her inability to sell her vision — not just to lawmakers from her Conservative Party and the slim numbers of Tories, but to the broader electorate and to currency and bond traders in London.

Sadly, Britain is facing both a political and economic crisis.

A day before her resignation, Truss lost the second of her government’s four most senior ministers, endured laughter as she tried to defend her record to Parliament and saw her lawmakers openly quarrel over policy, deepening the chaos at Westminster.

She came to office with a vision for low taxes and small government.

After taking office on September 6, her grand financial plan sunk the British economy even further and politicians from the ruling Conservative Party demanded that she resign. According to polling released Tuesday, October 18, only 10 per cent of the country had viewed Truss favourably.

The pound suffered a tumultuous past two months sparked by the market turmoil seen in the wake of Truss’ former chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng’s mini-budget. At one stage, the sterling slumped to its lowest-ever level against the US dollar.

The budget also drove up the cost of mortgages, causing economic pain for Brits and businesses already struggling from an economy that took a direct hit during the pandemic.

With Truss now gone, a new leader must be elected. The Conservative Party said nominations will close on Monday, October 24. Candidates need the signatures of 100 of the 357 Conservative lawmakers, which means the contest will have a maximum field of three. The new leader is due to be in place by Friday, October 28.

British media houses have already started to speculate. Potential contenders include former Treasury chief Rishi Sunak, who lost to Truss in his bid to become leader; House of Commons leader Penny Mordaunt; Defence Secretary Ben Wallace; and former PM Johnson.

While Conservatives remain bitterly divided on who should next lead their party and become the third British prime minister in eight weeks, opposing parties believe the people should decide.

Keir Starmer, leader of the Labour Party, said the Tories “no longer have a mandate to govern” and called for an immediate general election.

“After 12 years of Tory failure, the British people deserve so much better than this revolving door of chaos. In the last few years, the Tories have set record-high taxation, trashed our institutions and created a cost-of-living crisis,” he said in a statement.

“Now, they have crashed the economy so badly that people are facing £500 a month extra on their mortgages. The damage they have done will take years to fix.”

First Minister of Wales Mark Drakeford said Truss’ time in office had been a “complete and utter failure of government with everyone in this country now having to pay the price”.

Here in Barbados, we claim to pattern our parliamentary and governance system after the UK’s Westminster model. Yet, we often stop short as it relates to political accountability.

Attempts to lay blame at the feet of a minister of Government are often met with the refrain: “It is not a political issue.” But isn’t it! Any issue that deals with the governance of a country is, by definition, political. What the issue may not be is partisan politics, but it is political by nature.

Former PM Johnson’s parties, during a COVID-19 lockdown that had been imposed on citizens, were enough to cost him his office. Gross mismanagement of the economy, even if it was just 45 days, was enough to cost Truss her prime ministerial post.

However, in Barbados, we allow politicians from both sides of the divide to overstep and only hold them accountable during a general election. That should not be. Our system should be designed so that a politician who missteps, who takes the public’s trust for granted, or who does not fulfil a mandate or promise made to the electorate should do the right thing. That is where our governance system must be.

We need not wait for the Integrity Legislation to be passed in Parliament. The ironic thing about integrity is that it is something that should not have to be policed. Integrity must come from within.

No matter how high or low the post a politician occupies, doing the right thing should be par for the course. And in a case where the majority of the voting public is demanding that you go, simply do the right thing and, like Johnson and Truss, tender your resignation.