Rishi Sunak vowed to fix mistakes and tackle the ‘profound economic crisis’ as he became Prime Minister today (Tuesday).
Mr Sunak became PM after meeting the King at Buckingham Palace, following the resignation of Liz Truss.
The member for Richmond is the first North Yorkshire MP – in fact, the first Yorkshire MP – to become Prime Minister.
He gave a speech outside Number 10 Downing Street as he took office.
He said: “Right now our country is facing a profound economic crisis. The aftermath of Covid still lingers.
“Putin’s war in Ukraine has destabilised energy markets and supply chains the world over.”
He said Ms Truss had the “noble aim” of improving growth.
“And I admired her restlessness to create change. But some mistakes were made – not born of ill will, or bad intentions. Quite the opposite in fact, but mistakes nonetheless.
“And I have been elected as leader of my party and your Prime Minister, in part to fix them. And that work begins immediately.”
Mr Sunak said he “will place economic stability and confidence at the heart of this government’s agenda. This will mean difficult decisions to come.”
He said he protected the country as Chancellor during the Covid crisis. “There were always limits – more so now than ever. But I promise you this. I will bring that same compassion to the challenges we face today.”
His government would not leave our children or grandchildren “with a debt to settle that we were too weak to pay ourselves”.
Mr Sunak said he admired his previous boss Boris Johnson, who he helped to force from office.
But he added: “I fully appreciate how hard things are. And I understand too, that I have work to do to restore trust after all that has happened.
“All I can say is that I’m not daunted. I know the high office I’ve accepted and I hope to live up to its demands.”
He promised to meet the promises of the 2019 Conservative manifesto to create “a stronger NHS, better schools, safer streets, control of our borders, protecting our environment, supporting our Armed Forces, levelling up and building an economy that embraces the opportunities of Brexit”.
And he finished by saying: “Together we can achieve incredible things. We will create a future worthy of the sacrifices so many have made, and filled tomorrow and every day thereafter with hope.”
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