Rishi Sunak has rejected criticism that recent U-turns mean the UK cannot be taken seriously, as he fought to maintain order before a Conservative conference set to be dominated by questions about tax cuts and rivals jostling to succeed him.
Questioned on BBC One’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg, Sunak said he was relaxed about taking office without any election and then dropping significant parts of the Tories’ 2019 manifesto, saying he instinctively understood what the public wanted.
Shortly before Sunak spoke, Michael Gove, the levelling up secretary, highlighted the extent to which cabinet ministers had been freelancing on policy before the conference, calling for tax cuts before the next election.
In a sometimes combative interview, Sunak sought to present himself as a reinvigorated prime minister with a plan for change, following the recent policy reversal on net zero targets, and the expected U-turn on HS2.
With the conference likely to be the last Tory gathering before an election, Sunak will face significant pressure to agree to tax cuts, with Gove making the case for this in his interview.
Pressed on his easing of green targets, and his decision to prioritise the needs of drivers over bus users, pedestrians and cyclists, Sunak insisted this had not been “a knee-jerk reaction to to the Uxbridge by election” in July, where the Tories unexpectedly won by campaigning against London’s expanded clean-air zones.
The original article contains 721 words, the summary contains 229 words. Saved 68%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!
This is the best summary I could come up with:
Rishi Sunak has rejected criticism that recent U-turns mean the UK cannot be taken seriously, as he fought to maintain order before a Conservative conference set to be dominated by questions about tax cuts and rivals jostling to succeed him.
Questioned on BBC One’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg, Sunak said he was relaxed about taking office without any election and then dropping significant parts of the Tories’ 2019 manifesto, saying he instinctively understood what the public wanted.
Shortly before Sunak spoke, Michael Gove, the levelling up secretary, highlighted the extent to which cabinet ministers had been freelancing on policy before the conference, calling for tax cuts before the next election.
In a sometimes combative interview, Sunak sought to present himself as a reinvigorated prime minister with a plan for change, following the recent policy reversal on net zero targets, and the expected U-turn on HS2.
With the conference likely to be the last Tory gathering before an election, Sunak will face significant pressure to agree to tax cuts, with Gove making the case for this in his interview.
Pressed on his easing of green targets, and his decision to prioritise the needs of drivers over bus users, pedestrians and cyclists, Sunak insisted this had not been “a knee-jerk reaction to to the Uxbridge by election” in July, where the Tories unexpectedly won by campaigning against London’s expanded clean-air zones.
The original article contains 721 words, the summary contains 229 words. Saved 68%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!