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Greg Evans
Oct 14, 2022
Liz Truss heckled by MPs for saying she is 'genuinely unclear'
Independent
Prime minister Liz Truss is due to host an unscheduled press conference at Downing Street on Friday afternoon, amid speculation that she is going to announce a major u-turn of the government's heavily scrutinised mini-budget.
Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng, who is rumoured to have been sacked, has made a surprise trip back from the United States to meet with the prime minister, with his flight back to the UK becoming a minor internet sensation.
Truss is expected to announce that she is reversing her trickle-down economics planning of cutting corporation tax, which in effect, plunged the UK economy into chaos and saw the value of the pound plummeting.
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It is thought that the press conference is intended to reassure the markets that the government can balance its books ahead. ofthe Bank of England withdrawing its emergency bond-purchasing scheme at the end of trading on Friday.
Given that Truss has only been the prime minister for six weeks and she is already announcing a historic and politically embarrassing u-turn, revelry and mockery of Truss's forthcoming announcement is already rife.
\u201cEXCLUSIVE: \ud83d\udce3\ud83d\udce3\nThe new Conservative Party logo has been unveiled ahead of the Truss press conference.\u201d— Jon Will Chambers (@Jon Will Chambers) 1665742277
\u201cGripping stuff this.\n\nLIVE: Can Liz Truss outlast a lettuce? https://t.co/FVDQa4DUYL\u201d— Robbie Hawkins (@Robbie Hawkins) 1665743134
\u201cHastily organised Downing St press conference\u201d— Adam Payne (@Adam Payne) 1665742119
\u201cIt takes more than a press conference to manage the market. The communications in Downing Street is aimed at the lobby - which has no economic understanding or influence, these people ARE OUT OF THEIR DEPTH.\u201d— David Yelland (@David Yelland) 1665742475
\u201cIf the goal is to reassure the markets I\u2019m not sure a press conference starring Liz Truss is the best idea tbh\u201d— Kirsty Strickland (@Kirsty Strickland) 1665742149
\u201cExclusive preview of Liz Truss's press conference\u201d— Alexander Brown (@Alexander Brown) 1665742365
\u201cGeneral Election\u201d— Gary Neville (@Gary Neville) 1665742340
\u201cif Truss dumps the Budget does that mean she\u2019s joining the anti growth coalition\u201d— Jim Pickard (@Jim Pickard) 1665742158
\u201cPM giving a press conference just to feel something\u201d— Esther Webber (@Esther Webber) 1665741895
\u201cThe only announcement I want from Liz Truss is her resignation & call for General Election. Anything less is unacceptable. She hit the ground & got wiped out.\u201d— Dr Shola Mos-Shogbamimu (@Dr Shola Mos-Shogbamimu) 1665743008
Prime Minister Liz Truss’s press conference will come amid intense speculation that she and Kwasi Kwarteng will dismantle key elements of their controversial mini-budget, with the scrapping of the planned rise in corporation tax widely expected to be ditched.
It appears the Prime Minister will address the nation without her Chancellor by her side, casting further doubt over Mr Kwarteng’s position.
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