The campaign for the leadership of the UK’s Conservative Party, which will determine the country’s Prime Minister on September 5, has become more complicated with new reports about the immediate economic and livelihood outlook. The two electoral rivals disagree over tax and budget policies to curb inflation and counter the potential for an economic recession. Rishi Sunak supports maintaining and even increasing certain taxes to combat inflation, a stance that is not typically conservative. As the former Chancellor in Boris Johnson’s government, he refers to this idea as akin to Margaret Thatcher’s policies in the early 1980s. His opponent, Liz Truss, the current right-wing Foreign Secretary, insists on right-wing anti-tax policies and advocates for tax cuts.
Economic Time Bomb
All these interactions and confrontations were challenged by the release of an important report over the weekend in the UK. The investigative report, supported by former Prime Minister and Chancellor Gordon Brown, predicts dire livelihood crises in the coming months. Part of the report, produced by a powerful research team, indicates that a significant portion of the British society will be trapped in energy poverty following the increase in the minimum energy price in October. Gordon Brown has called on the outgoing Prime Minister Boris Johnson and the two current candidates for his position to urgently hold emergency meetings to establish definitive and practical policies to combat the impending crisis. He stated that if these three continue with the current situation, the House of Commons should come out of recess and formally force them to hold meetings and set policies. Gordon Brown has warned that the time bomb is ticking, and with each moment, millions of Britons are getting closer to falling into poverty.
Summer Drought Before Winter Crisis
However, this is not the entire story of the current crises in the UK. Beyond the livelihood crisis and the potential for 13% inflation, the country is now facing the possibility of drought and water shortages. Climate change has shown its damages, and the decrease in rainfall this year has sounded the alarm for water shortages. New laws prohibiting the use of piped water for public uses like washing cars and filling pools, with an intensity rarely seen worldwide, have been enacted. Citizens are even encouraged to monitor neighbors, warn against wastefulness, and report violations. It has been a strange year for the British.