conservative party

The crisis-hit PM, elected Conservative leader just six weeks ago on a tax-slashing platform, announced her resignation Thursday.

British Prime Minister Liz Truss's insistence that she would not quit after sparking a financial crisis was met with howls of laughter, incredulity and shouts of "resign, resign" as she spoke in the House of Commons on Wednesday.

Britain's political and economic turmoil has been greeted with thinly veiled satisfaction among pro-European and leftist politicians abroad, with some commentators drawing parallels to chaotic Italy.

Britain's new government said on Wednesday it would not reverse its vast tax cuts or reduce public spending as it sought to stand firm in the face of yet more turmoil in financial markets and concerns over its change in economic policy.

Fresh polling by Opinium for the Observer has put Truss's personal approval rating at minus 47.

Her proposal (before it was dramatically ditched) to cut taxes for top income earners, stems from a belief that such moves will encourage innovation and investment.

For many of her Tory critics, Truss is already drinking in the last-chance saloon just a month into her premiership.

Britain's Prime Minister Liz Truss defended her contentious plan to kick-start economic growth through tax cuts, despite expectations Tuesday of a second damaging U-turn.

Liz Truss: how to understand polls that give Labour an enormous lead – and why the Tories are right to fear a major election loss

Rishi Sunak, Truss's defeated rival for the party leadership, and her scandal-tainted predecessor Boris Johnson are among many senior MPs staying away from the conference in Birmingham.

The right wing of the Conservative party has often demonstrated scepticism if not hostility towards renewables and the transition to a low-carbon economy.

Truss, 47, has described her ascent towards the top of British politics as a "journey" that has seen her criticised for being ambitiously opportunistic.

Liz Truss is expected to be named leader of the governing Conservative Party and Britain's next prime minister on Monday, poised to take power at a time when the country faces a cost of living crisis, industrial unrest and a recession.

Truss, 47, has consistently enjoyed overwhelming support over Sunak in polling of the members.

An estimated 200,000 Tory grassroots have been able to vote since earlier this month for their preferred candidate, before postal and online ballots close on Friday.

Identifying prejudice is a longstanding difficulty for pollsters. Survey respondents are unlikely to admit they are prejudiced against ethnic minorities, because it is seen as socially undesirable.

British foreign minister Liz Truss clashed over the future of the economy with former finance minister Rishi Sunak on Thursday as the two contenders to be Britain's next prime minister debated the Bank of England's warnings of a long recession.

Former British finance minister Rishi Sunak said it was still "early days" in the contest to replace Prime Minister Boris Johnson, as two opinion polls showed his rival Liz Truss had extended her lead in the race to be Britain's next leader.

Like Johnson, Churchill had a complicated relationship with the Conservatives.

Former finance minister Sunak has denounced Truss's "fairy tale economics", vowing to tame surging inflation first, but has admitted that he is the "underdog" against the foreign secretary.

If it's not the pictures of her standing atop a tank in a nod to Conservative leader Margaret Thatcher, it's the meme-defining moment when she vented her anger over cheese imports into Britain that made Liz Truss something of a household name.

Rishi Sunak will claim credit for steering Britain's economy through the COVID-19 crash but must overcome accusations that he is too rich and too willing to raise taxes to win the race to be the next prime minister.

Former finance minister Rishi Sunak and foreign secretary Liz Truss will battle it out to become Britain's next prime minister after they won the final lawmaker vote, setting up the last stage of the contest to replace Boris Johnson.

A top Bank of England official pushed back on Monday at suggestions from a leading candidate to become Britain's next prime minister that the government should set a "clear direction of travel" for monetary policy.

The five Conservative contenders still vying to be Britain's next prime minister clashed over tax cuts in a second televised debate on Sunday, with the two frontrunners - Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss - stepping up their battle on the economy.

The debate has ripped open Conservative tensions about the direction of economic and environmental policy under whoever succeeds Johnson.

Johnson announced his resignation as party chief on Thursday, after a cabinet uprising over scandals culminating in his appointment of an ally with a history of sexual assault allegations to a senior role.

Former British Prime Minister John Major said Boris Johnson should be replaced immediately rather than be allowed to remain as a caretaker leader because his cabinet may struggle to "restrain him", amid wider calls for him to be removed now.

Britain's new finance minister, Iraqi-born Nadhim Zahawi, has inherited a cost-of-living crisis that risks pushing the UK economy into recession.

Barely three years into his party leadership, Johnson's authority is so damaged that it seems almost impossible for him to survive as PM to the next election.