Adding to the roster of senior Tories backing her leadership bid, former Conservative health minister Sajid Javid announced Wednesday his support for Liz Truss as the UK’s next Conservative prime minister.
Leading to a wave of resignations, Javid resigned as Health Secretary in Boris Johnson’s government in early July at the same time as former Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak.
Javid said in an article published in The Times on Wednesday “After careful consideration, it is clear to me that Liz Truss is best placed to pass these tests.”
Praising Truss’ “sharp focus and willingness to challenge the status quo”, Javid said that the new prime minister would need to swiftly reunite the party.
Slamming Sunak for not cutting taxes, Javid challenged his approach to the economy and said we need to show “we are rising to the challenges of our times”.
Other than Javid, Defence Secretary Ben Wallace, Chancellor of the Exchequer Nadhim Zahawi, international trade minister Penny Mordaunt, Tory centrist Tom Tugendhat, and Northern Ireland Secretary Brandon Lewis have backed Truss.
Citing a series of scandals and missteps over the last 12 months, the ruling Conservative Party is choosing a new leader after Johnson was forced to announce his resignation when ministers resigned en masse from his government.
With a winner to be announced on September 5, the party’s members will vote by postal ballot or online over the next few weeks.
Truss has extended her lead in the race to be Britain’s next leader, with 58 per cent of participants showing support for Truss in a survey of 1,003 party members.
(With inputs from agencies)
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