‘The lady is not for turning up’: Mocking Tory rebels say Liz Truss has lost power

Britain's Prime Minister Liz Truss attends a press conference in central London. Photo / AP

Liz Truss said she was “sorry” for moving “too fast” on tax cuts, but insisted she would lead the Conservative Party into the next election.

The British prime minister said she remained committed to her “vision” of a high-growth, low-tax economy but that it would have to be achieved in a “different way”, following backlash to her mini-Budget.

Truss told the BBC she wanted “to accept responsibility and say sorry, for the mistakes that have been made”, but that she and Jeremy Hunt would repair damage to the economy and her relationship with Conservative MPs.

It came after a bruising appearance in the House of Commons for Hunt, who updated MPs on the Government’s plans to scrap almost all tax cuts announced by her then-chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng last month.

Truss has launched a charm offensive among Tory MPs to convince them they must now support her leadership, following days of speculation about rival bids from Rishi Sunak, Penny Mordaunt and Ben Wallace.

“I’ve acted in the national interest,” she said. “I remain committed to the vision, but we will have to deliver that in a different way.

“And that’s what I’m determined to do. With the new chancellor Jeremy Hunt.”

She added: “I recognise we did act too far and too fast and I’ve made the necessary adjustments to that.

“I do want to accept responsibility and say sorry, for the mistakes that have been made.”

Truss also said she would fight the next election as leader of the Conservatives.

“I’m sticking around because I was elected to deliver for this country, and that is what I am determined to do,” she said.

In the Commons, Truss was mocked as “not for turning up” as loyalists accused her of handing over power to Hunt.

The prime minister was ridiculed by Sir Keir Starmer, the Labour leader, after she ducked a showdown with him in the Commons and sent out Mordaunt, who is openly tipped to replace her in No. 10, to defend the Government’s economic plans.

The Leader of the Commons joked that Truss was not hiding “under a desk” and said “sorry” for the mini-Budget chaos.

Truss faced a more supportive crowd when she addressed the One Nation caucus of moderate Tory MPs in an attempt to shore up her premiership.

At the meeting, Matt Hancock, the former health secretary, told rebellious colleagues that “now is the time for unity” and implored them to get behind her leadership.

PM faces ridicule

In the Commons, Sir Keir had tabled an urgent question, which was granted by Speaker Lindsay Hoyle, in an attempt to drag the prime minister to the despatch box.

On seeing that Mordaunt had turned up instead, he quipped: “I guess under this Tory Government, everybody gets to be prime minister for 15 minutes.

“It’s time for leaders to lead. But where is the prime minister? Hiding away, dodging questions, scared of her own shadow. The lady is not for turning up.”

As the prime minister faced ridicule in the chamber, the contours of a looming leadership battle were emerging, with campaigns kicking into overdrive.

Jeremy Hunt, the new chancellor, arrived shortly afterwards to deliver a new economic plan that entirely ripped up the tax-cutting agenda.

He was openly praised by Tory MPs in the chamber, who said they had breathed a “sigh of relief” that he was taking control of the nation’s finances.

‘Give her a chance’

Hunt has repeatedly ruled out a third run at Downing Street himself, but has been tipped to stay on in his current post if Rishi Sunak becomes prime minister.

Liz Truss (right) and Rishi Sunak. Photo / AP

He insisted that he believes Truss will still be in the office at Christmas, and urged Tory MPs to “give her a chance”.

Asked about his own leadership ambitions, he told Sky News: “I rule it out, Hunt rules it out, three Hunt children rule it out.”

Allies of the former chancellor were said to be openly canvassing backbenchers for their reaction, should he decide to pitch for the leadership and, therefore, No. 10.

‘Bring back Boris’

Meanwhile, Mordaunt, who is said to have reactivated her leadership ambitions, drew admiration for her performance when she took on Sir Keir.

Alberto Costa, the MP for South Leicestershire, who backed her over the summer, said she had “abundantly demonstrated what an enormous asset she is to the governing party”.

One Tory MP said she was “solid as ever on a very bad wicket” while another hailed her as “perceptive and clever”. Another backbencher said she and Hunt had performed well and had confirmed the view that the prime minister was the “weak link in the team”.

At the same time, allies of Boris Johnson were stepping up their calls for him to return and save the party from electoral oblivion.

Nadine Dorries, a former culture secretary, said there was no “unity candidate” and the former prime minister was the only option with a mandate from voters.

“The choices are simple – back Liz, if not, bring back Boris or face a general election within weeks,” she said.

Lord Marland, a former Tory treasurer and friend of Johnson, said that he “will certainly not return until he’s got some money”.

He said: “My view is that he is the only person who can win an election, and you could not rule out circumstances where he apologises to the nation.

“But more importantly, the Conservative Party apologised to him, and he is invited back as leader sometime next year.”

Another ex-Cabinet minister said that Johnson was “still hungry” for the top job and had the “star quality” to win the next election.

They said: “Boris will have served a bit of time out, he’ll have earned some money. There’s no reason why he can’t be voted back in as leader.”

But it is unlikely that Priti Patel, the former home secretary who has been tipped for a run at No. 10, would throw her hat into the ring.

“She is more concerned about where the country is and where the party is,” said a source.

PM’s position ‘not recoverable’

It came as two more Tory MPs publicly called for Truss to resign, with the pressure on her position only growing.

Angela Richardson said it would be “better for the party and for the country to have a change in leadership at the top” so both can move on.

She added that a “coronation” of a new leader should take place immediately and “MPs should exercise common sense about that”.

Charles Walker, a veteran backbencher, said the prime minister’s position is “not recoverable”, and gave her “a week or two” left in the job.

“She has put colleagues, the country, through a huge amount of unnecessary pain and upset and worry. We don’t need a disruptor, we need a uniter,” he told Sky News.

Jake Berry, the Conservative chairman and an ally of the prime minister, said she had acknowledged “mistakes have been made”.

Her press secretary added that Truss had admitted “we tried to do too much too quickly” with the tax cuts in the mini-Budget.

“The prime minister said she was sorry for some of the mistakes that have been made over the last few weeks,” he said.

She continued to retain support from some quarters, despite anger among the loyalists over the tax U-turn and the power granted to Hunt.

One veteran MP urged her not to “pander” to “Sunak refuse-niks”, and dismissed talk of a leadership contest as “fanciful meanderings of people who lost”.

“Senior figures on the right of the party are rallying around Truss. You can’t lose and then say we’ve got to change the rules,” they said.

Hunt under fire for mini-Budget U-turns

At a separate meeting, Hunt came under attack from MPs who questioned what authority he had to act as the de facto leader of the country.

Backbenchers loyal to Truss expressed frustration that the new chancellor had reversed virtually all of the policies set out in the mini-Budget.