Rishi Sunak signals he will TURN DOWN a job in Liz Truss’s government following claims she will appoint her beaten rival as health secretary after Tory leadership contest
- Rishi Sunak signals he could turn down a job from Liz Truss if she becomes PM
- He notes it would be ‘tough’ to hold Cabinet role without agreeing on ‘big things’
- Mr Sunak and Ms Truss have been involved in bitter clashes during Tory contest
Rishi Sunak today signalled he could turn down a job in Liz Truss’s government if she beats him to become the new prime minister.
The former chancellor noted how it would be ‘tough’ to hold a Cabinet role without agreeing on ‘the big things’ with ministerial colleagues.
His comments come after he and Ms Truss have spent weeks engaged in a bitter battle to replace Boris Johnson in Downing Street.
The Tory leadership contest has seen increasingly fierce clashes between Mr Sunak and the Foreign Secretary over their approaches to the cost-of-living crisis.
Mr Sunak, who is widely viewed to be trailing Ms Truss in the race for Number 10, has recently claimed his rival would be guilty of ‘moral failure’ if she did no more than offer tax cuts to hard-pressed Britons.
He has also claimed the Foreign Secretary’s focus on tax cuts, rather than direct support with soaring energy bills, would leave millions at risk of ‘destitution’.
The widening gulf between Mr Sunak and Ms Truss has led some Tories to worry how the party can reunite after the divisive leadership race.
A beaten candidate is traditionally offered a job in the new leader’s top team once a contest is concluded.
But Mr Sunak today suggested he could turn down such an offer from Ms Truss, due to their recent public spats over the economy.
Rishi Suank, speaking to BBC Radio 2 today, suggested he could turn down a role in Liz Truss’s government should she beat him to the Tory leadership
Ms Truss and Mr Sunak have spent weeks engaged in a bitter battle to replace Boris Johnson in Downing Street
Asked about reports Ms Truss could seek to appoint him health secretary in the coming weeks, he told BBC Radio 2: ‘I am not focused on all of that and I doubt Liz is, to be honest.
‘I’m focused on just getting out and about trying to win this race at the moment. I am not thinking about jobs for me or anyone else.
‘One thing I have reflected on as well a bit is being in a Government, in Cabinet, over the last couple of years, you really need to agree with the big things.
‘Because it is tough, as I found, when you don’t. And I wouldn’t want to end up in a situation like that again.’
Mr Sunak quit as chancellor last month with an attack on Mr Johnson’s leadership.
He also pointed to ‘fundamental’ differences between himself and the Prime Minister on economic policy.
At the weekend, it was reported that Ms Truss and her team have held at least three meetings on who should be appointed to her Cabinet as she steps up preparations to replace Mr Johnson.
According to the Sunday Times, Mr Sunak could be offered the role of health secretary.
But the newspaper reported that others in Ms Truss’s team want any job offer to Mr Sunak to be ‘so bad he turns it down’.
After the last Tory leadership election, Mr Johnson’s defeated rival Jeremy Hunt revealed how he rejected a job in the Cabinet in order to return to the Tory back benches.
Mr Hunt soon became the chair of the House of Commons health and social care committee.
But there have recently been claims that Mr Sunak could soon abandon Parliament and move straight to the US should he, as expected, lose to Ms Truss.
The former chancellor has long-standing links to America and Silicon Valley.
He and his wife own a penthouse flat in Santa Monica and both previously held coveted green cards.
Source: Read Full Article
