In office but not in charge: how is Truss still UK prime minister? – times of India

On the face of it, Lizzo trussThe days of the British Prime Minister are few and his death is imminent. He has been forced to cancel his entire economic policy programme, sacking his friend and finance minister. quasi quartengoTo register further depth, its polling numbers have seen a decline.
Legislators from her Conservative Party are plotting to oust her and on Tuesday she appeared to be losing the support of two major Tory-leaning newspapers.

Why – and how – is the truss still in place at 10 Downing Street?
The primary reason is that so far, Tory MP Completely divided as to who should take over. As one MP said, there is no credible succession plan. It has the same dynamic as his predecessor Boris johnsonThose who went long past the point where there seemed to be a majority consensus should go.
When Johnson eventually resigned in July, there was still no agreement and the party is now desperate to avoid another bitter, protracted leadership contest, as in the aftermath of his resignation. Some MPs are ready to agitate against the truss if the successor is unopposed.

But potential candidates face major hurdles. Take Rishi Sunak, the former Chancellor of the Exchequer, whose dire warnings about the truce’s economic plans have come to the fore. This gives him credibility with the markets.
No Tory Unity
Yet he has a large number of enemies in the Tory party. There are about 100 lawmakers on the party’s ideological right – including ardent Brexiters and Johnson supporters – who are determined to stop the sunk premier.
They see Sunak as the face of the type of Treasury conservatism they supported the truss to reject, and blame him for triggering Johnson’s downfall. One minister warned that choosing Sunak would lead to even more Tory fighting.
There were suggestions that Sunak might team up with another hopeful Penny Mordaunt on the United Unity ticket. But a person familiar with the matter said Sunak rejected a view from a senior lawmaker who claimed to be acting on Mordant’s behalf.

Some Tory lawmakers believe Mordaunt wants the top post for himself and will not agree to the coronation of another candidate. That’s another problem: Sunak and Mordaunt would both get most of their support from centrist lawmakers – the so-called One Nation group – that broke the caucus. It is possible that, if it comes to the election between them, Mordont may receive more support from the party’s authority than Sunak.
Sunak, Mordaunt . to block
An MP on the right side of the party said they were supporting “ABSOM” – anyone other than Sunak or Mordant.
Can any other candidate come out from the party centre?
Defense Secretary Ben Wallace has received the honor for his handling of the Russo-Ukraine War. But he has suggested that he is not interested in the job.
Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt Seen as a contender, given that he is now the de facto in charge of the government. But he told Sky News late Monday that he has denied ever becoming prime minister for family reasons. He is also very unpopular with right-wing Tory lawmakers, who have scorned his pro-lockdown stance during the pandemic.

Grant Shapps, the former transport secretary who keeps a spreadsheet on Tory lawmakers’ leadership question, is well-connected and a formidable operator. Yet until now he has remained relatively out of the limelight, and there has been little demand for him to take over.
It is also unlikely that the Brexiteer right will go down without a fight. Home Secretary Suella Braverman has been described by aides as an overseer of Truss’s job, but she is hardly a unity choice. There is little sign that Johnson’s return is on the cards despite lobbying by his main supporter, Nadine Dorris.
no easy fix
Even if the party can agree on who will be the successor of the truce, there is no clear mechanism for how this can happen.
According to a person familiar with the matter, about two-thirds of what Tory lawmakers would need to seek a change of leader for the influential 1922 committee — which sets rules on such matters — voids 12 months of protection from a challenge to the truss. to do. Theory after taking over
If that limit is met – or even less but a significant number of Tory MPs call for – emergency rules could be drawn up to allow a faster vote by lawmakers if the truss is changed. There is no appetite for grassroots members in the parliamentary party, who supported the truss in the summer, to make a final decision this time.
Things may be moving fast, although there are signs that the party is still some way away from that happening. One minister said it is more likely that the pressure on the truss becomes unbearable as the scale of the opposition becomes clear, and she resigns of her own free will. Truss’s aides, however, insist that she will not do so.
Caught in a holding pattern, Tory MPs are waiting for a future trigger – perhaps more market turmoil, a scandal, a possible softening of the government’s position on Brexit, or cabinet resignations – to force a change. .
But a seasoned Tory warned that the chances of a clean outcome are far from over. He said that this party is simply unbearable.