Rishi Sunak says will run UK economy like Thatcher if prime minister

Sunak is one among the eight candidates competing to replace Boris Johnson as PM and Conservative Party leader

Economic decline and the cost-of-living squeeze in the UK are big political issues in the leadership contest

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Rishi Sunak at the launch of his campaign to be Conservative Party leader and prime minister. Photo: Reuters

Published: 11:34am, 13 Jul 2022Updated: 12:06pm, 13 Jul 2022

Former British finance minister Rishi Sunak said he would run the economy like Margaret Thatcher, the former Conservative prime minister, if he becomes the next UK prime minister.

“We will cut taxes and we will do it responsibly. That’s my economic approach. I would describe it as common sense Thatcherism. I believe that’s what she would have done,” Sunak told Tuesday’s Daily Telegraph.

Sunak, whose resignation last week helped trigger Boris Johnson’s downfall, heads a final list of eight candidates seeking to become the next Conservative Party leader and UK prime minister.

Economic decline and the cost-of-living squeeze in the UK are big political issues in the contest to replace Johnson.

The contenders needed the backing of 20 Tory MPs to secure a place in Wednesday’s first round of balloting. Senior Conservative lawmaker Graham Brady confirmed the names at a briefing in Westminster.

On a day of moves in Westminster, the high-profile candidate Grant Shapps withdrew and threw his support behind the early front-runner Sunak, who has the most publicly-declared support from Tory MPs. Former health secretary Sajid Javid, who resigned moments before Sunak last week, also pulled out, as did the relatively unknown Rehman Chishti.