The Conversation (0)
Liam O'Dell
Jul 22, 2022
Related video: Liz Truss told by school pupil her visit is 'so awkward'
Sky News
Nothing quite says the Conservative Party will move on from the turbulent tenure of Boris Johnson’s premiership quite like having the final two Tory leadership candidates being two of his strongest supporters in government: Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak.
Nevertheless, both the former chancellor and current foreign secretary have been trying to distance themselves from Mr Johnson – earlier this week both of them denied the outgoing PM a job in their cabinet if they succeeded him.
In the case of Ms Truss, she wrote last week: “We need to be bold. We need to do things differently. We need to cut taxes. We need to unleash growth.”
And there’s no finer example of ‘doing things differently’ than reportedly having exactly the same faces in Boris Johnson’s government serve in her own.
According to The Times, Ms Truss will either have current Treasury chief Simon Clarke or business secretary Kwasi Kwarteng as her chancellor, while the current work and pensions secretary Thérèse Coffey could be home secretary thanks to her support of the leadership campaign.
The newspaper claims eliminated leadership candidate Tom Tugendhat is expected to make an appearance, with current education secretary James Cleverly rumoured to become foreign secretary.
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Oh, and current culture secretary Nadine Dorries and Commons leader Jacob Rees-Mogg could well remain in government thanks to their endorsement of Ms Truss’ leadership campaign. Sorry everyone.
And to think Ms Truss has said in her latest campaign video that her "strong team of ministers" would represent the "best and brightest" of the Conservative Party... Even if it is no more than media speculation at this point, it’s left many horrified as others brand it “a rearrangement of the deckchairs” on the Titanic:
\u201cThey really don't want to win the next election do they?\u201d— Ben Fletcher (@Ben Fletcher) 1658499824
\u201cJust rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic\ud83d\udca9\ud83d\udca9\ud83d\udc47\ud83d\udc47\ud83d\udca9\ud83d\udca9\u201d— Martyn Pugh \ud83d\udc99\ud83c\udff4\udb40\udc67\udb40\udc62\udb40\udc77\udb40\udc6c\udb40\udc73\udb40\udc7f (@Martyn Pugh \ud83d\udc99\ud83c\udff4\udb40\udc67\udb40\udc62\udb40\udc77\udb40\udc6c\udb40\udc73\udb40\udc7f) 1658474342
\u201cNot exactly a new Cabinet in prospect then - just a rearrangement of the deckchairs for many of the rats who deserted the Titanic as it nearly (but not quite) sank but who are still clinging on like leeches.\u201d— Rosie \ud83d\udc99 (@Rosie \ud83d\udc99) 1658497187
\u201cI actually very much doubt this. I\u2019m not a fan of Truss at all but I am not yet prepared to believe that she is this daft. Time may tell whether I\u2019m being naive.\u201d— Alex Crockford (@Alex Crockford) 1658429527
\u201cDorries and Rees-Mogg are professional limpets, sticking themselves to government without offering a single thing of value in return. They have no talent, no goals beyond their own enrichment, and if they worked in an office you wouldn't trust them to empty the bins\u201d— inummerable Chloe AB (@inummerable Chloe AB) 1658428102
\u201cNeither @NadineDorries nor @Jacob_Rees_Mogg should ever be let anywhere near government again. Are we are basket case? Well yes, perhaps we are, an international joke if these two muppets become ministers.\u201d— Peter Reynolds (@Peter Reynolds) 1658403153
\u201c@timespolitics First time I\u2019ve hoped it will be Sunak.\u201d— Times Politics (@Times Politics) 1658391384
Please, Liz, say it isn’t so…
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