What does Rishi Sunak stand for? What are his views on Brexit, was he a remainer - policies explained

Rishi Sunak will replace Liz Truss as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.

A Conservative Party leadership race was launched for the second time in months after Truss announced her resignation last Thursday (20 October), following a decidedly turbulent 44 full days in office. Although in technical terms the South West Norfolk MP resigned from office, in reality, she was driven out when the public and her fellow MPs turned against her in the wake of the government’s disastrous mini budget.

Penny Mordaunt was Sunak’s main opponent for the role after political celebrity and recently ousted Prime Minister Boris Johnson withdrew from the race yesterday (23 October). But Mordaunt also pulled out of the race today (24 October) after reportedly failing to reach the 100 MP supporters needed to run.

She wrote on Twitter: “We have chosen our next Prime Minister. This decision is a historic one and shows, once again, the diversity and talent of our party.” She added that Sunak has her “full support”.

So, now that the former Chancellor has come out on top (second time’s a charm) - what exactly does he stand for? NationalWorld has taken a look at the key policies of the third Prime Minister of 2022.

Tax

Given the economic fallout from the previous administration’s disastrous mini budget, tax will be a key issue for the UK in the coming months. When he was running for leadership over the summer, Sunak presented himself as a traditional, low-tax Tory - pledging to drop the bottom rate of income tax from 20% to 16%.

However, the Richmond MP insisted he would implement these changes prudently, slamming his opponents, such as Truss, who promised to slash taxes immediately as “telling comforting fairy tales”. This means his proposed tax cuts would likely not happen for several years, something he says would ensure the cuts were funded by “growth” and not borrowing.

As Chancellor, Sunak was responsible for the planned increase to corporation tax from 19% to 25%, a hike Truss initially reversed but was forced to U-turn on after severe backlash. Similarly, Sunak was behind the 1.25 percentage point rise in National Insurance contributions, something Truss also scrapped - and which remains scrapped at present.

Spending

In light of his fiscal caution, Sunak is unlikely to indulge in significant public spending. In fact, his last budget as Chancellor effectively included £17 billion in spending cuts on account of his insistence to not make any allowances for soaring inflation.

On the other hand, during the summer leadership contest, the Tory MP did promise to increase the cost of living payments initially outlined by Boris Johnson’s government. He said: “This winter is going to be extremely tough for families up and down the country, and there is no doubt in my mind that more support will be needed. I will look at doing more for pensioners, for example.”

Despite slamming his opponents’ promises of tax cuts during his campaign, Sunak surprised many by pledging to scrap VAT on all domestic energy bills for a year if he were to end up in Number 10 - a move which would reportedly save the average household £160. This prompted critics to accuse him of “flip-flopping on tax”, with Kwasi Kwarteng - a key ally of Truss, who she ultimately fired from her Cabinet - saying his pledge only came as an attempt to outdo Truss’ tax pledges.

Brexit

Sunak was a public supporter of the Leave campaign ahead of the referendum, formerly selling Brexit as a “once in a generation opportunity to take back control”. He also said the vote would result in a “freer, fairer and more prosperous” Britain.

His voting record on TheyWorkForYou reinforces this stance, with votes against greater integration with the EU revealing an enduring belief in separating the UK from the union. He was also amongst the Tories supporting a no-deal exit back in 2019.

Net Zero

During his summer campaign trail, Sunak promised to adhere to the Conservative Party’s 2019 manifesto pledge to reduce the UK’s carbon emissions to net zero by 2050. He also said he hoped to make the UK energy independent by 2045, mentioning the need for “more offshore wind, more rooftop solar and more nuclear” - as well as the need to “insulate millions of homes”. To achieve this goal, the MP promised to streamline planning and licensing rules for green energy.

However, rumours of a lack of support for environmental policies still circulated - with some pointing out that as Chancellor, Sunak blocked the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy’s proposals for home insulation. Similarly, according to TheyWorkForYou, he ‘almost always’ voted against measures to prevent climate change.

Immigration

Sunak is a supporter of the government’s controversial Rwanda deportation plan, pledging over the summer to cap the number of refugees Britain would take each year and promising to do “whatever it takes’’ to make the asylum plan succeed - such as tightening up the definition of who was eligible to claim asylum. He also promised more caseworkers to help clear the backlog of applicants.

He previously told BBC Radio 4: “This country has a proud history of welcoming people but it’s also vital that we’re in control of who’s coming here.” A spokesperson for the MP added in a statement that Sunak was proud to come from a family of immigrants, but believed the UK must control its borders.

NHS

As Chancellor, Sunak introduced the National Insurance increase to fund increased health spending and help pay for the clearing of backlogs in the NHS. He also previously announced a £6 billion investment to tackle NHS waiting lists and improve the use of digital technology in hospitals.

When he was campaigning to become Prime Minister, he did not set out any further plans but attempted to assure supporters the NHS was “safe in [his] hands,” saying “I don’t think we can have an NHS that is underfunded and not able to deliver the care that it needs.”

In terms of social care however, Sunak previously voted against increased benefits for those with long-term illnesses or disabilities. He also voted for a reduction in spending on welfare benefits.

Defence

Over the summer, Sunak made clear his support for the UK’s spending commitments to Ukraine, which he helped organise as Chancellor. He said during his campaign trail: “If I become Prime Minister, I will redouble our efforts and reinforce our policy of total support for Ukraine that Boris has so ably led.”

The Richmond MP also vowed to prioritise funding for the armed services and maintain current defence spending levels, despite a row in 2019 with Defence Secretary Ben Wallace who claimed Sunak tried to block a multi-year settlement for the Armed Forces. The former Chancellor retaliated by arguing he will “never short change our Armed Forces”.

LGBTQ+

Sunak only became an MP in 2015, so has never voted on gay rights. He has however laid out his position on trans issues, which became a key topic of debate during the summer leadership contest.

He said at a hustings event that “prejudice against trans people is wrong” and claimed the Conservative Party is an “open, welcoming family to everybody across society”, but also definitely answered “no” when asked if trans women were women.

Sunak’s allies also claimed he would look to lay out a “manifesto for women’s rights” in which he hoped to combat “recent trends to erase women via the use of clumsy, gender-neutral language.” On the topic, the Daily Mail reported that the manifesto would argue transgender women should be excluded from women’s sporting events and would call on schools to “be more careful” in teaching on “issues of sex and gender.”