The Tories have since been forced to make a massive U-turn on tax-cutting plans for the highest paid
A former Cabinet minister described Liz Truss as a “dead woman walking”, amid non-stop backlash following the Tories’ shock mini-budget.
The party’s plans sent the UK’s financial market into chaos, with the pound plunging to a record low against the dollar. The Bank of England was forced to step in and buy up to £65 billion worth of government bonds after the policies left some UK pension funds teetering on the brink of collapse.
Speaking to The Mirror, a minister, who has not been named, said they were “ashamed” that the party was going to abolish tax cuts for people at the top end.
“She should have the good sense to realise she has lost all credibility and cannot do anything to recover,” they said, “She is a dead woman walking.”
Since then, mounting pressure on Tories led Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng to announce a U-turn on the top rate of income tax on Monday, stating: “We get it, and we have listened”.
We get it, and we have listened. pic.twitter.com/lOfwHTUo76
— Kwasi Kwarteng (@KwasiKwarteng) October 3, 2022
Government sources would not comment on the U-Turn to BBC, but former cabinet minister Grant Shapps had warned Liz Truss was likely to lose a Commons vote on the plan.
The 45p income tax cut policy was one of a series that prompted turmoil in the markets over the past week, with the pound reaching record lows against the dollar.
On Sunday, the Conservative party said any Tory MP who voted against the mini-budget would be suspended from the party.
Related links:
- Petition calling for an early general election approaches 400,000 signatures
- UK markets have lost half a trillion dollars since Liz Truss took charge
- Tory MP tells struggling Brits to ‘cut back or get a better job’
