'UK doesn't need starry-eyed boosterism': PM contender Rishi Sunak pans rival Liz Truss

In the UK, while Liz Truss promised to use a September emergency budget to "immediately" cut taxes, Rishi Sunak contrasted his "clear-eyed realism" with the "starry-eyed boosterism" of his Tory leadership rival. Sunak has argued that inflation must be brought under control before taxes can be reduced, claiming that Truss' promised unfunded tax cuts will drive up prices even further.

Sunak wrote in The Sun, criticising Truss' economic plans, "We need clear-eyed realism, not starry-eyed boosterism."

The two candidates vying to succeed Boris Johnson as Prime Minister clashed again this week over their economic plans, after the Bank of England warned that the UK would enter the longest recession since the financial crisis, with inflation expected to reach more than 13%.

Sunak said, "The priority for me is to not do things that make it worse and I think putting £40 billion plus and borrowed money into an economy that’s seeing an inflation spiral does risk making it worse."

Truss does not accept the "inevitability of a recession"

On the other hand, Truss said she does not accept the "inevitability of a recession" and promised to cut taxes "immediately" if she wins the race for No. 10. She wants to cut the national insurance hike by six months, implementing the change within days of a September emergency budget rather than waiting until April as usual, according to the newspaper.

Truss told The Telegraph, "Despite the Bank of England’s stark assessment this week, I do not believe in resigning our great country to managed decline or accepting the inevitability of a recession. I would hit the ground running by bringing in an emergency budget, charting a firm course to get our economy growing in order to help fund our public services and NHS. I would use this to immediately tackle the cost-of-living crisis by cutting taxes, reversing the rise on national insurance and suspending the green levy on energy bills."

Additionally, Sunak claimed that Truss offered "big bung" to big corporations and "the well-off" while "leaving those who most need help out in the cold." He declared that if Truss were to become prime minister, he would not make assumptions about what would be included in an emergency budget.

(Image: AP)