UK prime minister says she will face rising energy bills

The British Prime Minister, Liz Truss said that it will establish plans on Thursday (8) to face the increase in electricity bills, but that it will not impose a tax on producers of energy . Instead, it must increase indebtedness to finance an expensive intervention.

truss, named prime minister on Tuesday (6), promised immediate action to address one of the most daunting sets of challenges to be faced by a newly installed leader in post-war history, including rising energy bills, a impending recession and industrial conflicts.

She chaired a meeting of her new cabinet on Wednesday before making her parliamentary debut as leader of the Conservative Party, coming face-to-face with opposition Labor Party leader Keir Starmer in key questioning sessions for the former. -minister.

“I am against a new tax. I believe it is wrong to prevent companies from investing in the UK,” Truss told lawmakers, adding that he will announce more details on Thursday.

A source familiar with the situation told Reuters that Truss is considering freezing energy bills in a plan that could cost around 100 billion pounds ($115.33 billion), overtaking the relief scheme for the area during the pandemic. .

The new finance minister, Kwasi Kwarteng, told business leaders that indebtedness will be higher in the short term to provide support to families and businesses.

Investors have expressed concern about the scale of extra borrowing that the government of UK will likely need to do to fund his support scheme and the tax cuts promised by Truss during his campaign.

Truss’s first appearance in Parliament as prime minister was cheered by her allies, receiving strong support as she came face-to-face with Starmer of the Labor Party.

Former leader Theresa May was applauded when she pointed out that Truss is the third woman in the Conservative Party to take over as prime minister, while all Labor leaders were men.

Truss was chosen by party members with a lower low-tax platform. Her confrontation with Starmer, who questioned why she would not consider a tax to fund her energy plan, established the ideological divide between the two leaders.

“There is nothing new in a Labor leader who is calling for more tax increases. It’s the same old tax and spend,” she said, amid applause.