‘He’ll be better than Liz – but it won’t be difficult!’ Voters back Rishi Sunak saying he will ‘be able to steer us through’ the UK’s economic storm – but others say he is ‘brave’ and needs a ‘magic wand’ if he’s going to tackle the cost-of-living
- Voters across the country have reacted to news that Rishi Sunak will be PM
- Sunak was the only candidate to attain more than 100 backers among Tory MPs
- It follows turbulent times which saw PMs Boris Johnson and Liz Truss step down
- But as the UK welcomes its third PM in two months, we asked voters their views
As the UK prepares to welcome Rishi Sunak as its third PM in under two months, voters reacted with bemusement at the rip-roaring speed of events in Westminster.
Today the former Chancellor won the support of the support of over 100 Tory MPs and will be invited to form a government.
Mr Sunak will take over from Liz Truss after a turbulent 45 days in office.
Views are divided among voters, with some praising Sunak as a safe bet after Truss’s chaotic short premiership, while others insist the country needs a general election.
Residents in Sunderland, situated in Labour’s heartlands, are among those who believe Rishi Sunak will stabilise the economy.
Hairdresser Pauline Reavley, 55, pictured on the seafront at Seaburn, Sunderland, praised former Chancellor Rishi Sunak’s credentials as he prepares to become Britain’s next Prime Minister
Pauline Reavley, 55, a hairdresser from Sunderland, said: ‘He seemed very personable as chancellor and was very kind to people who had struggled throughout Covid. The furlough scheme was brilliant and gave much needed help to people. ‘
His main concerns will be uniting the party and stabilising the markets. He has a lot of knowledge about how interest rates, markets and pensions work so I think he’s best placed for the job.
‘He’ll be able to pull us through the current economic state we’re in.
‘I hope his cabinet is made up of people from different sides of the party in order to reunite them and to take advice from different views. ‘It seemed as though Liz chose her friends, which ended badly for her. ‘He’ll be better than Liz Truss, she only made it 45 days in office and didn’t achieve anything.
‘If Rishi can stabilise the market and sort out Liz’s mess then he may have a shot at winning a general election.’
Paul Collins, 65, a retired teacher from Scunthorpe, Lincolnshire, who now lives in Sunderland, said: ‘Rishi is going to be better than Liz Truss.
‘He has a better overall grasp of the economy and how it works so he’s best placed to lead us through this.
‘Even the last chancellor, Kwasi Kwarteng, had a degree in economic history, which isn’t going to be as useful as hands on experience.
‘It’s a good thing we skipped the leadership contest and went with Rishi, we needed someone in now.
‘If we went to a general election it would be pointless because Labour isn’t a credible party or a good alternative. He seems like an honest MP and we can trust what he says.’
Rishi Sunak has swept to victory in the latest Tory leadership contest as the only candidate to win over 100 nominations among Conservative MPs
Production worker Darren Pegram, 42, said Sunak ‘knows how to make the banks work and has a grasp on the economy’
Darren Pegram, 42, a production worker from Sunderland, said: ‘He’s going to be better than Liz Truss but that isn’t difficult.
‘He knows how the banks work and has a grasp on the economy.
‘He won’t make the same mistakes that Truss did and he may even have a shot at winning a general election.
‘I’m a swing voter but I’ve been turned off the Conservatives because of the mess we’re in – but he may change my mind.’
Claire Longworth, a 41-year-old volunteer from Durham said: ‘They need to start completely fresh and get rid of the people at the top.
‘He’ll be better than Liz but he’s the best of the worst that’s left.
‘We need people who aren’t associated with Boris or Liz and to give backbenchers a try – although, is there any that are good enough?
‘He won’t be able to unite the party, they can’t seem to agree on anything and I doubt he’ll be able to change that.’
Retired steel worker Terry Barker, 77, said Sunak will be ‘better than Liz Truss’
Terry Barker, a retired steel worker, 77, from Sunderland said: ‘I think he is the right fella for it, he can do the job.
‘He seems suited for it, has a lot of experience as chancellor and is a very knowledgeable person.
‘He has a good of a chance as anyone else to reunite the party but he’ll have a big job doing that.
‘He’ll be better than Liz Truss, not that she had much of a shot, he seems more confident and competent.’
Elsewhere, residents in the Conservative stronghold of Sidcup in south east London were more guarded in their comments about the incoming Prime Minister.
Steven Phinch, 66, a retired market stall holder said: ‘Boris was hounded out by Rishi who stabbed him in the back.
‘Rishi was sat next to Boris in cabinet and he later knifed him.
‘Yeah Johnson wasn’t perfect, but he inspired you, whereas Sunak doesn’t do anything for me.
‘I’d rather have Penny Mourdant or Kemi Badenhock to be honest. There shouldn’t be a general election, not right now.
‘I’ve voted Conservative all my life – except for Blair – but I don’t think I’d vote Tory again if there was an election. I don’t like the boats, I want Brexit done properly and I’m really feeling the pinch.
Dad-of-two, Andrew Mach, 43, a systems engineer said he was surprised to see Boris drop out of the leadership contest.
Andrew said: ‘Boris going was unexpected, especially after cutting his holiday short.
‘He probably felt he didn’t have the backing, but I’m not sure.
‘I think there should be a general election, we are supposed to be in a democracy so that’s what should happen.
‘If Rishi thinks he has the support of the country then have a general election and good luck to him.
‘I don’t know who I’d vote for… I’m worried about inflation more than anything else, the cost of living is terrible.’
In Berkshire, another traditionally safe Tory stronghold, many people seemed happy that Rishi Sunak was taking the reins at No 10 but most want a General Election
Tina Barnes, 82, is a strong supporter of Boris and said she is ‘quite upset Sunak is Prime Minister’
71-year-old Lois Coleman from Newbury, said she was ‘surprised how popular Boris still is’
Lois Coleman, aged 71, from Newbury, said: ‘Rishi Sunak is probably a safe pair of hands. We need something sorted out as it’s all ridiculous at the minute. I didn’t think Liz Truss was clever enough to run the country anyway.
‘I also don’t think she should be able to claim the pension wage she can have either – I hope she does the right thing and says she doesn’t want it. I think we need a general election because we are the laughingstock of Europe and not just Europe, come to think of it.’
The retired secretary added: ‘I was surprised how popular Boris still is. I think Rishi Sunak has his head screwed on the right way when it comes to the economy. I think we ought to give him a chance – he cannot do any worse than Liz Truss.’
Speaking in Reading, shopper Tina Barnes, aged 82 years, said: ‘I wanted Boris. I’m quite upset that Rishi Sunak is the Prime Minister. The reason is he almost made the exact same mistakes as Boris Johnson, in terms of PartyGate.
‘I don’t know for sure but he will probably be better than Liz Truss. I believe we should have a general election – even though I don’t want Labour to win, to be fair.
The retired proof reader, who lives in Reading, added: ‘I don’t think Rishi Sunak will unite the Conservatives – I have heard a lot of people say that the Conservatives won’t get another win at the next election now that he’s taken over.’
32-uear-old James Michael-Finnerty, of Reading, said: ”I think a general election should be called – I know that it’s something they don’t have to do yet officially’
University of Reading technician James Michael-Finnerty said: ‘I’ve not been happy with the last few Prime Ministers and I don’t see anything getting better now.
‘I think a general election should be called – I know that it’s something they don’t have to do yet officially. However the Tories know it won’t be in their favour and so it won’t happen. I think it would be good for everyone though.
The 32-year-old added: ‘I don’t see Rishi improving the economy – he was the Chancellor for a few years and now he’s going to have even more power. Honestly, I don’t think he’s going to make much difference.’
Reading chef Amy Fellow, aged 22 years, told the MailOnline: ‘I don’t think Rishi is a man of the people and I think he will probably just look after the rich.
‘He’s in his own little world – I don’t think he has an idea about what it’s like for normal people, so how could he fix the economy? I think there should be a general election, as people haven’t had a say as to who is in charge since Boris Johnson was elected.’
Isaac Minns, aged 22 years and from Caversham, added: ‘Rishi strikes me as the best of an odd bunch. If someone told me a couple of weeks ago that he would be Prime Minister I would have been unsure, following Partygate and the negative press of him and his wife.
‘However, comparing him with other options, he is probably the best available. He comes across as very smart and knowledgeable and also knowledgeable on the economy, which is something that is quite valuable right now.
‘I think he will unite the Conservatives – it seems to me that everyone likes him and he has just as good a chance as anyone really. I think we should give him the opportunity and see how he does before we call on a general election.’
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