The Battle for Number 10: Liz Truss refuses request to apologise over public sector pay policy U-turn – as Rishi Sunak vows to continue in contest | Politics News

Liz Truss turned down a Conservative Party member’s request to apologize for her proposal to link public sector pay with the local cost of living – reiterating that the policy was “distorted”. .

Conservative Party member Tom from Gateshead, on Sky News’s Fight for No 10 programme, has asked the secretary of state and Tory leadership predecessor to apologize for initially intending to introduce a “really pretty” policy uncomfortable”.

Ms Truss refused to do this, reiterating that the media had “misreported” the proposal and that she “will not continue this policy because of expressed concerns”.

Political center: Sunak and Truss join the battle for Sky News special #10 leadership

Ms. Truss also said a recession is not inevitable after Bank of England warns Britons face two years of falling household income with inflation set to soar to more than 13% and the economy into its longest recession since the financial crisis.

“What the Bank of England said today is of course extremely worrisome but it is not inevitable. We can change the outcome and we can make the economy more likely. more growth potential,” she said.

Meanwhile, asked about the same topic and whether he can do anything about the recession, the fellow leadership candidate Rishi Sunak told the Sky News program: “Of course, of course there is.”

He said “containing inflation” was the most important aspect of staving off a recession, adding: “So what I’m not going to do is embark on a loan worth tens of billions of pounds, put it on the country’s credit card, ask us. our kids and nieces to choose the tab because that’s not right. That’s not responsible.”

He has faced a difficult moment during the leadership special, with one Tory member exclaiming: “You cut Boris for your own good.”

Reply to comments, mention the former prime minister stepped down from his cabinet role last month Mr. Sunak justified his departure, which led to a series of ministerial resignations, Mr. Sunak justified his departure, saying: “The government was wrong on an ethical issue that has not been addressed. I can’t defend.”

Mr Sunak also vowed not to give in to the Tory leadership race despite Ms Truss leading the polls and pledging to “fight extremely hard” until the final day of the campaign.

Asked if he would resign in front of a Conservative member in front of an audience, the former prime minister said: “The quick answer is no, and that’s because I’m fighting for something that I really do. trust and I’m absorbing my ideas across the country.”

Mr Sunak’s answer comes after surveys conducted by both YouGov and ConservativeHome this week. shows Mrs. Truss extending her lead overtake him in the race to 10th Place.

Ms. Truss was widely investigated in this week’s flip-flop over her public sector pay proposal.

When asked by presenter Kay Burley how she reached the £8.8billion figure as part of her plan if the policy was “misunderstood”, the foreign secretary admitted: “I don’t have details.”

She added: “I accept that the way the policy has been interpreted to cover those people is not right. And that’s why I made the immediate decision not to continue it.”

Sunak ‘never benefited’ from tax havens

On Monday evening, the Foreign Secretary said she would save £8.8 billion by introducing regional pay councils instead of national councils to set salaries for public servants, which could means paying government employees in poorer parts of the country than their peers in wealthier areas, such as the South East and London.

Experts warn that to reach the total, the plan needs to include teachers, nurses and police.

After the policy sparked outrage from some Conservatives, on Tuesday lunchtime Ms. Truss’s team revealed the plan and issued a statement emphasizing that “current public sector wages will be fully maintained”.

In another development in the Sky News special leadership programme, Mr. Sunak was also investigated whether he or anyone in his family benefited from overseas tax havens.

He replied “no”, adding: “I have never benefited.”

Other key takeaways during each candidate’s 45 minutes of baking include:

• Ms. Truss told the audience: “There are no skeletons in my closet.

• Mr. Sunak defended an old video that he claimed didn’t have any working-class friends, saying “we all said silly things when we were young”.

• The foreign minister said “it would be wrong for us to give away any territory on behalf of the Ukrainians”.

• Mr. Sunak said a “huge difference” could be made between now and next winter to reduce the UK’s dependence on Russian energy.

• When told by an audience member that her policies were “economically implausible”, Ms. Truss said that “trying to balance the books too soon is actually counterproductive”.

• Mr Sunak defended the plan to charge people who miss GP appointments as £10, saying the NHS should be “free at point of use but not free at point of misuse”.

• Ms. Truss said she would support doctors and nurses by “removing some of the central diktats” and by “having fewer layers of management”.

• Former prime minister said “yes, I’m tough enough” with Ukraine.

• The Secretary of State declined to say whether she would remove the Tory whip from Boris Johnson if he was found to have lied to MPs.

Ms. Truss also appears to have taken another turn by reverting to her previous belief that more homes should be built on green land to boost the economy.

“I have changed my view on that,” Ms. Truss said when investigated on the matter, adding: “What I see is how these top-down goals lead to an impact. the opposite of building a house.

“And I’m now of the opinion that what we need to do is have an incentive for local councils to set up investment zones and do things differently, because the current system isn’t working.”

Economic policy rigs ‘risky’

Meanwhile, Mr Sunak has attacked Ms Truss over her economic policies, saying he did not “promise tens and tens of billions of pounds” in a clear one on her tax cuts plan. Foreign Minister.

He described such an approach as “risky” and said he wanted to be “honest” with the country.

“I want to speak directly to the country about the challenges we face and what will be needed to overcome them.”

“And that’s why I think you can trust me on this because I’m prepared to do it. Even though it will cost me dearly politically,” he said. Sunak told the audience.

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