UK Prime Minister Liz Truss resigns after just six weeks in office

Beleaguered U.K. Prime Minister Liz Truss has resigned after just six weeks as the country’s top official.

Truss, 47, secured the position in early September, beating out former U.K. Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak to secure leadership of the Conservative Party, which holds a majority in the U.K. Parliament. Truss replaced former U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who resigned in July 2022 after a series of scandals.

Truss entered office facing a number of crises, including a rapidly rising cost of living and a related energy-price crunch caused by Britain’s response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and a fight with the European Union over trade issues following Brexit.

Since her election, grocery inflation in the U.K., which was already at record highs, broke more records, reaching a rate of 13.9 percent. The high inflation has caused sales declines in seafood, and forced job cuts at retailers like Tesco.  

The Associated Press reported that Truss resigned just a day after vowing to stay in power. However, soon after, U.K. Home Secretary Suella Braverman resigned, tipping the scales against Truss. Truss had also fired U.K. Treasury Chief Kwasi Kwarteng on 14 October, after an economic plan crafted by Kwarteng and Truss unveiled on 23 September caused further economic turmoil.

The resignation comes amid upheaval in Truss’ Conservative Party. Conservative lawmaker Charles Walker told the BBC after a vote yesterday that the government was in “a shambles.”

“I hope that all those people that put Liz Truss in [office], I hope it was worth it,” he said. “I hope it was worth it to sit around the Cabinet table, because the damage they have done to our party is extraordinary.”

Photo courtesy of Fred Duval/Shutterstock