Think for a moment of a joyous fairground, of adrenaline, of high-speed rollercoasters and jubilant crowds in awe of an illuminating spectacle. Now imagine a carnival suffering from an abysmal reputation of malfunctioning rides with high staff turnover and a manager deluded on how to fix the mess.
This latter fairground symbolises UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s crisis-laden prime ministership, one of widespread strike action, a cost-of-living crisis, public spending cuts and rocketing inflation. All are symptoms of the intense furore surrounding Sunak’s circus.
His appointment in October signalled to the traditional Tory base that new beginnings were on the horizon, whereby the factionalism, incompetence and mishaps that sank his predecessors were things of the past. However, Sunak’s new Conservative Party government is struggling to get off the ground, mainly due to angst-ridden voters unable to make ends meet amid a soaring cost-of-living crisis.
The mismanagement is not helped by a revolving door of leadership. Last year three prime ministers occupied Downing Street after two were humiliatingly ousted.
A morally bankrupt Boris Johnson was the first to exit the ride after a litany of scandals wracked his reputation — from lockdown-breaking parties during the pandemic to a mass exodus of cabinet ministers. Waiting first in line to take over was low-tax mascot Liz Truss, whose expensive ticket of trickle-down investment and the scrapping of bankers’ bonus was enough for her carousel ride to be the shortest in history.
After 49 days of intra-party strife over Trussonomics, along came adrenaline-junkie Sunak. Not his first rodeo, though, as his initial bid for the top job was overshadowed by his resignation from Johnson’s cabinet, starting a revolt that was cataclysmic for the Tories’ reputation. Nevertheless, the next time he threw his hat into the ring, he won.
Sunak’s government has thus far not improved the party’s image, instead shining a light on the crooked house that is Downing Street.
Lest we forget Sunak’s delay in sacking party chair Nadhim Zahawi who faced controversy for not declaring he was issued with a tax penalty after a lengthy investigation by the tax office. Justice Minister Dominic Raab also faces mounting allegations of bullying from junior staffers, and three senior officials were recently interviewed by an ongoing inquiry into how he has allegedly treated staff. Raab has promised to resign if he’s found guilty, yet Sunak’s timidity means Raab is able to cling to his job for now.
The prime minister’s family is worth more than a whopping £700 million, so what attracts the multi-millionaire tech bro to keep overseeing a fair mired in multiple scandals? Maybe it’s to salvage his own approval ratings by hoping the public has forgotten that as chancellor, he oversaw the biggest rise in taxes for average Britons at the time his wife was avoiding paying large amounts of UK income tax.
Sunak’s leadership has only exacerbated the despair felt by voters as Britain faces deepening crises that outpace its Western counterparts. For example, he has refused to budge on inflation-busting pay increases for striking public sector workers, has been accused of a “scattergun” approach towards business owners who cannot afford high energy bills, and has been focusing solely on criticising “woke” issues such as trans rights in an attempt to fend off criticism from the predominantly anti-woke and right-wing media.
Widespread outrage spurred on by Sunak’s invisibility on pressing issues has besieged his leadership. Most of the public support those who have little choice but to strike. An estimated two-thirds of poll respondents support the walk-out by nurses and ambulance workers, with 45% “strongly” backing it.
The government’s poll ratings continue to plummet after the abominable actions of Truss, Johnson and now Sunak. For a while, Labour has led the Conservatives by double digits when voters are asked who they’d prefer if a general election were imminent. It’s as clear as day that the Tories’ wrecking ball has smashed its way through voter despair with no plans to clear up the mess.
Sunak’s ambitions to transform a fairground government riven with chaos into a success is lacking innovation and spending capacity. If the prime doesn’t do more to appease an exasperated and struggling public, this rollercoaster of doom will resume at breakneck speed.
