Truss' resignation came on the heels of calls to do so from more than a dozen British legislators. So, how did she end up here, and in just a few weeks?
Below, a timeline of Prime Minister Truss' brief (and chaotic) moment in power.
Liz Truss.Hollie Adams/Bloomberg/getty
Sept. 5: Truss is selected as prime minister
Conservative Party membersselected Truss— who had previously served as Britain’s Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs and Minister for Women and Equalities since 2019 — as their new party leader in early September.
Truss replaced former Prime MinisterBoris Johnsonafter hestepped down as the British premieramid scandals including COVID-19 “Partygate,” in which 16 social gatherings were found to have taken place in Downing Street during a 20-month period of various levels ofCOVID-related lockdownsin England.
The margin of victory for Truss was slimmer than many expected, with the conservative winning 57% of the votes of her party’s members to become its leader.
Truss' appointment made her the third woman to serve as prime minister, behindMargaret Thatcher(1979–1990) andTheresa May(2016–2019).
“Thanks for putting your faith in me to lead our Conservative Party, the greatest political party on earth,” Truss told supporters at an announcement event that day.
Queen Elizabeth and Liz Truss.Jane Barlow/AP/Shutterstock
For the first time in her 70-year reign,Queen Elizabeth IIappointed a new prime minister in Scotland, at Balmoral Castle, where the monarchtraditionally spent her summers.
Outgoing Prime Minister Johnson also traveled to Scotland Tuesday for a formal farewell from the monarch.
While a source hadexplainedearlier that the decision was made for the audiences to take place at Balmoral to provide certainty for the new prime minister and Johnson’s schedules, it became clear later that holding the event in Scotland likely had something to do with the Queen’s health. Her meeting with Truss was the last time she was publicly photographed.
Prime Minister Liz Truss at Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral.BBC America
Sept. 8: Truss is thrust into the international spotlight with the Queen’s death
Just two days after formally appointing Truss prime minister,Queen Elizabethdied at the age of 96. Truss, now squarely in the spotlight, paid tribute to the late royal while helping usher in a new era withKing Charles III’spending succession.
Sept. 23: Truss' chancellor announces historic tax cuts
Nearing the end of September, Truss' chancellor, Kwasi Kwarteng, announced what would have been the biggest tax cuts in the U.K. in 50 years. Truss dubbed the tax plan a “fiscal event,” and not a budget, and therefore did not consult the Office for Budget Responsibility.
When it emerged that Trusshad not told the Bank of Englandabout the tax plans, chaos in the financial markets ensued and the British pound sank as the International Monetary Fund called for a reversal of the plan.
Kirsty O’Connor - WPA Pool/Getty
Oct. 13: Truss has her first audience with King Charles III
Escorted to the meeting room, the prime minister curtsied before shaking hands with the monarch, addressing him as “Your Majesty.”
“Back again,” Charles noted, to which the Conservative Party leader replied: “Well, it’s a great pleasure.”
“Dear, oh dear,” the King said, looking down. “Anyway,” he continued, pivoting the conversation.
LikeQueen Elizabethand other monarchs before her, King Charles is to hold private audiences with the prime minister each week to discuss government matters.
Oct. 14: Truss fires Kwarteng
After weeks of saying she would not abandon the plan, Truss reversed course, announcing in mid-October that she would abandon part of the plan and fire Kwarteng. After the partial reversal of Truss' tax policy seemingly didn’t go far enough, more of the plan would be abandoned in the ensuing days.
Jeremy Hunt.Hollie Adams/Getty Images
Oct. 17: New Chancellor Jeremy Hunt reverses the tax plan
New Chancellor Jeremy Hunt, who replaced Kwarteng, announced on Oct. 17 that the previously announced tax cuts would not move forward as planned.
Hunt’s announcement was deemed “one of the most astonishing U-turnsin modern political history,“The Guardianwrote, and included “slashing the energy price freeze which the prime minister had repeatedly championed” and dismantling “almost all of the platform that Truss’s leadership victory had been built on, including the majority of her tax cuts.”
Media outlets across the U.K. quickly reported Truss had lost control of her government, with The Economistestimating that Truss saw just “seven days in control” — which equated to, as the magazine put it, “roughly the shelf-life of a lettuce.”
Truss, however, remained defiant, saying on Oct. 19 she was a “fighter not a quitter.”
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Rob Pinney/Getty
Oct. 20: Truss resigns
Outside No.10 Downing on Thursday, Truss informed her constituents that she had notified King Charles III of her intent to step down, and would continue her duties for a few more days until a new Conservative Party leader is chosen.
A leadership election to find her successor will be completed within the next week, Truss said, to “ensure that we remain on a path to deliver our fiscal plans and maintain our country’s economic stability and national security.”
source: people.com
