Liz Truss was selected as the new leader of the UK's ruling Conservative Party on September 5, 2022, and was confirmed as the country's prime minister the following day. A China hawk, Truss promised prior to her ascension to take a tougher line on Beijing, including declaring genocide in Xinjiang. She had previously served as Foreign Secretary, during which role she cut funding for the Great Britain China Centre, a Foreign Office agency that maintains informal dialogues with China.