What were the key events in British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s first 100 days?
The third and final British Prime Minister of 2022 was swept into Downing Street by Tory MPs as the party sought stability after Liz Truss’ chaotic and short tenure.
After beating rival Penny Mordaunt and a rumored comeback from Boris Johnson, Mr Sunak faced number 10 and vowed “integrity” and to rectify the “mistakes” of his predecessor.
Mr Sunak, who made history as Britain’s first Hindu Prime Minister, the first of Asian heritage and the youngest in more than 200 years, has nonetheless inherited a host of challenges, including soaring inflation, sky-high energy bills and labor disputes.
Close
It’s been a difficult first 100 days as PM for Mr. Sunak (PA)
These challenges and more have dominated the first 100 days of his tenure as prime minister, a milestone he will reach on Thursday while, like his old boss Mr Johnson, he has also been rocked and badly damaged by missteps, controversy and scandal.
This is how these 100 days played out.
October 25, 2022
Mr Sunak returned from Buckingham Palace and set about appointing his cabinet, promising to fix the Truss administration’s “mistakes” after its disastrous mini-budget roiled markets and forced the Bank of England to intervene .
But his selection immediately caused controversy as Suella Braverman, who had given her surprise endorsement to her former cabinet mate to replace Ms Truss, returned to Cabinet despite resigning just days earlier after sending a Tory backbencher a sensitive document from a personal email had sent account.
November 7, 2022
Mr Sunak traveled to Cop27 to meet with world leaders and speak at the climate conference after angering activists by initially declining to attend.
Downing Street said the PM was too busy focusing on the autumn budget, but after critics picked up on the snub, Mr Sunak eventually relented and traveled to Egypt.
Close
Mr Sunak addresses delegates during the Cop27 summit in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt (PA).
He used the conference for an early meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron.
November 8, 2022
Mr Sunak lost a cabinet minister early in his tenure.
Confederate Sir Gavin Williamson resigned after allegedly sending explosives-laden messages to former Chief Whip Wendy Morton complaining about being refused an invitation to the Queen’s funeral and claiming he had a former official of the Queen MoD, accusing him of “unethical and immoral” behavior when he was Chief Whip.
November 14, 2022
The Prime Minister and Home Secretary welcomed a new deal with France on migrant crossings, which stipulated that for the first time British officers would be stationed in French control rooms and at beach approaches to monitor operations.
As part of the pact, the number of French officers patrolling beaches on the country’s north coast would also increase from 200 to 300.
Close
Sir Gavin Williamson resigned after a series of allegations (PA)
November 16, 2022
Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab, who had returned from a brief stint in the back benches to take up his old position as Justice Secretary, faced a bullying inquiry after complaints were made against him.
This investigation is ongoing and Mr Raab’s long-term fate has yet to be decided.
November 17, 2022
In a difficult day for Mr Sunak and his Chancellor Jeremy Hunt, the two tried to deliver on their promises to calm financial markets and restore financial credibility to Britain.
Accompanied by a report from the Office for Budget Responsibility, Kwasi Kwarteng’s successor unveiled a £55 billion package of tax hikes and spending cuts that angered Tory MPs and left some economists with questions but seemingly following the new Prime Minister’s promise of fiscal discipline the chaos corresponded to Mrs. Truss’s mini-budget.
Close
Ex-Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng (PA)
November 19, 2022
Mr Sunak made his first visit to Ukraine, held talks with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and reiterated Britain’s support for the war-torn country.
The visit was not just symbolic as Mr Sunak also announced a £50million defense aid package for Ukraine.
December 2, 2022
Mr Sunak suffered his first electoral defeat as Prime Minister when Labor won the Chester by-election
December 6, 2022
In early December, the Prime Minister bowed to pressure from Tory backbenchers to limit the construction of new onshore wind farms in order to distance himself from his own stated opposition to building new turbines onshore.
Close
Mr Sunak addresses the media during a visit to Berrywood Hospital in Northampton (PA).
During the same period, the government also watered down local housing targets to avoid a commons rebellion.
December 15, 2022
Tens of thousands of nurses across England, Wales and Northern Ireland staged their first national strike when Mr Sunak and his government failed to resolve a dispute over pay and working conditions.
The General Secretary of the Royal College of Nursing (RCN), Pat Cullen, lashed out at the government, accusing it of being intransigent on nurses’ demands.
December 16, 2022
Mr Sunak suffered another defeat at the ballot box after Labor won comfortable wins in by-elections in Stretford and Urmston.
December 22, 2022
Mr Sunak took over the vacant position of Ethics Advisor to the Prime Minister and appointed Sir Laurie Magnus as the new independent Advisor on Ministerial Interests.
Mr Sunak was criticized for not going further and giving the adviser the power to conduct his own investigations without permission from the then Prime Minister.
January 4, 2023
In a New Year’s address, Mr Sunak tried to outline a new vision for his position as Prime Minister, pledging to halve inflation this year, boost the economy, ensure the national debt comes down, cut NHS waiting lists and introduce new legislation say goodbye to stop small boats.
However, the speech was criticized for containing only vague timelines for most of the promises.
January 7, 2023
In the midst of an extremely difficult winter for the NHS, Mr Sunak held emergency talks at Downing Street to help ease the crisis.
Late December and early January were dominated by increasingly dire warnings about the state of public health, with senior doctors describing the NHS as on a razor’s edge.
Close
Health and Human Services Secretary Steve Barclay (PA)
Amid a wave of strikes and high rates of flu and coronavirus, Mr Sunak and his Health Secretary Steve Barclay have faced repeated allegations that the crisis has been brewing for years.
January 9, 2023
Crisis talks between ministers and unions failed to resolve industrial disputes between nurses, teachers and railway workers.
Talks between union leaders and various departments raised hopes that a breakthrough could end Britain’s biggest wave of strikes in decades.
But the talks produced little of note as a meeting between NHS unions and Mr Barclay was branded “bitterly disappointing”.
January 9, 2023
An important change under Mr. Sunak was warmer relations with Europe.
Close
Mr Sunak toasts to marshmallows during a visit to the Sea Scouts community group in Muirtown near Inverness during a two day visit to Scotland (PA).
News of an agreement with the EU on post-Brexit data sharing raised hopes of a final deal on the Northern Ireland Protocol, which has roiled daily politics in Stormont and fueled tensions between London and Brussels for months.
January 20, 2023
In a widely ridiculed incident, Mr Sunak was handed a stipulated fine by Lancashire Police after he was seen in an Instagram video he filmed to promote equalization of funding during a visit to the county when he wasn’t wearing a seat belt.
It was Mr. Sunak’s second fine. He also paid a hefty fine as chancellor during the Partygate scandal for attending a lockdown-breaking rally to mark the 56th birthday of then-Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
Close
Mr Sunak during a visit to a community project at Accrington Market Hall in Lancashire – where he was fined for not wearing a seatbelt (PA)
January 29, 2023
After days of questioning and controversy over Nadhim Zahawi’s tax affairs, Mr Sunak sacked the Tory leader after an ethics inquiry found he had committed a “grave breach of the ministerial code”.
Mr Zahawi had exposed damaging reports that he had settled an estimated £4.8million bill with HM Revenue & Customs during his time as Chancellor, including paying a fine.
The dispute had dragged on for days and caused Downing Street a headache, but the Prime Minister initially said he wanted a “due process” to take place.
https://www.independent.ie/world-news/europe/britain/what-were-the-key-events-of-british-pm-rishi-sunaks-first-100-days-42318486.html What were the key events in British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s first 100 days?