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Rishi Sunak leaves the Conservative Party headquarters in London, Britain, October 24, 2022. [Photo/Xinhua]
By Thomas O. Falk
He is the third British Conservative prime minister in the last four months: Rishi Sunak. Amidst significant crises, he promises more financial and economic competence but has to assert himself against a deep party and social divide. And above all, his old nemesis, Boris Johnson.
Even after only his second day in office, a few things can be safely assumed: With Sunak, a professional has moved into No. 10 who perhaps understands the economy better than most of his predecessors. Market liberalism, small government, low taxes and strong British patriotism are the visions and ideas Sunak will seek to implement moving forward.
They are desperately needed. Inflation is soaring, electricity and gas are almost unaffordable, while food is also becoming increasingly expensive. Sunak's predecessor Liz Truss had made the situation even worse: Uncertainty on the markets, skyrocketing debt and mortgage interest rates, and the British pound always in peril of slipping dangerously.
It was the son of Indian immigrants and a former hedge fund manager, who studied at Oxford and Stanford, who had pointed out the damage Truss' plans would cause during the party's leadership contest that summer. Few listened, but he turned out to be correct. Now it will be up to him to turn things around.
After all, before him stands the difficult task of continuing the clean-up work and the desire by Britons to hear answers as to how they can make it over the winter and how things will move in the right direction again.
The markets, so far, have reacted positively to Sunak's win, with the British pound finally rising again. Expertise and professionalism do matter, it would appear.
But that's only the start. Sunak now faces the difficult task of leading Britain through the economic crisis and uniting his party. He could be the right person for this. He is considered competent and seriously willing to shape politics.
If he achieves his first objectives, rebuilding trust and stabilizing the markets, the Tories have a chance to regain the confidence lost in recent months ahead of the next 2024 election.
But as suitable as Sunak seems to be, his wealth and his party's inner divide could make his already daunting task even harder.
The Labour Party, for instance, will never hesitate to point out Sunak's immense net worth and already pose the question of whether he could possibly know and care about the personal struggles of Britain's working class.
These sentiments will be supported by the fact that the Tories, for a long time now, have appeared as a party with only one main purpose: To secure their own sinecures for those in office and those with privileges.
But even if Sunak delivers impeccable work, rescues the economy and overcomes the attacks, Labour are going to launch on him; he is by no means untouchable.
The last few months have revealed how divided the Conservative Party is and that even backstabbing is acceptable as the ultima ratio. The fact that Sunak found significantly more support in his own Tory faction than his competitors during the latest leadership quest or that some MPs from the Boris Johnson camp ultimately supported Sunak after Johnson did not want to run again cannot negate the following: There's a lot of bad blood amongst the Tories.
Above all, Boris Johnson will remain something of a "sword of Damocles" for Sunak. Johnson, who in 2019 secured the biggest win for his party since 1987, continues to yield power and influence and, as we learned the previous week, a desire to eventually become PM again.
Sure, he did pave the way for Sunak by standing out of his way. However, at the same time, his statement after pulling out of the race only emphasized his aforementioned desire: "I believe I have much to offer but I am afraid that this is simply not the right time."
Needless to say, Johnson, while stepping aside, has not forgotten that it was Sunak's resignation as the chancellor of the exchequer in his cabinet at the time that triggered his downfall and ultimately forced him to resign.
To this day, Johnson supporters, who are now finding Sunak as their PM, branded the latter as a traitor. None of these circumstances is an ideal foundation to bring Britain back.
Saving the economy is one thing; saving the economy while constantly looking over your shoulder, not merely for Labour attacks but for attacks from your own party, is a whole different story.
Thomas O. Falk is a London-based political analyst and commentator. He holds a Master of Arts in international relations from the University of Birmingham and specializes in U.S. affairs.
