Rishi Sunak becomes the first non-white person to hold the role of prime minister after competitors withdraw from the contest.
Sunak would succeed Liz Truss as prime minister if he officially assumed the role. Truss resigned as prime minister after trying in vain to stop the UK’s economic disaster. Truss’s future as prime minister would be decided by votes cast by the dominant Conservative Party. Truss, however, declared her resignation prior to any votes being cast.
Sunak outperforms Boris Johnson, the previous prime minister to Truss, as the most reliable option among the contenders. However, following Truss’ disorganized spending plan that she worked on with Kwasi Kwarteng, her finance minister, Conservative Party members are hopeful that the moderate and pragmatic leader would be able to guide the nation.
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Sunak in politics
In British politics, Sunak dismantles roadblocks. In more than 200 years, he serves as the youngest prime minister. He also becomes the first person of Asian origin to hold the highest rank in the UK.
Sunak pursued a career in finance before going into politics. He then stepped into the legislature. Then-prime minister Boris Johnson saw potential in him and eventually appointed him as the finance minister, priorly recognized as the chancellor of the Exchequer.
Sunder Katwala, director of British Future, was taken aback by Sunak’s selection as a key political figure. He argues, however, that incidents like that have increased in frequency recently. It began, according to Katwala, when David Cameron became prime minister. Then he started to appoint members of racial and ethnic minorities to top government posts.
“Ethnic diversity has become a new normal at the top table of British politics. In the last five years, we’ve seen ethnic minority chancellors of the Exchequer, home secretaries, and foreign secretaries at a remarkable pace,” Cameron said.
“British Indian is what I tick on the census; we have a category for it. I am thoroughly British; this is my home and my country, but my religious and cultural heritage is Indian, and my wife is Indian. I am open about being a Hindu,” Sunak said in one interview.
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Being a political model
Let’s say Sunak effectively calms the financial crisis affecting the UK, characterized by high oil costs, rising interest rates, and escalating inflation. Supporters predict that he will thereafter establish himself as a role model in the South Asian community. Many Asians in the UK might benefit from Sunak’s supposed influence, especially if they want to run for office.
Browen Maddox, the chief executive of Chatham House, a London-based think tank, said, “It has forced someone with economic competence to the top of the Conservative field, and it has also forced Labour, the main opposition party, to put together a platform based on a claim to financial coherence, competence, things that Labor hasn’t always been associated with in the past.”
“It is the greatest privilege of my life to be able to serve the party I love and to be able to give back to the country I owe so much to,” Sunak said.
“The United Kingdom is a great country, but there is no doubt we face a profound economic challenge. We need stability and unity, and I will make it my utmost priority to bring our party and our country together.”
Photo Credit: The New European
Source: NPR
