In Truss the U.K. doesn't trust
Post Reports
The Washington Post
4.4 • 5.1K Ratings
🗓️ 6 October 2022
⏱️ 16 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
A tax policy by the new administration in Britain sent the price of the pound plummeting and the global economy spiraling. Today on “Post Reports,” we explain why it caused such turmoil, and what else to expect from Prime Minister Liz Truss.
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Prime Minister Liz Truss has been in office for only about a month, but already her proposals have weakened the struggling British economy and worsened her party’s support. Most notably, her administration proposed removing income tax for the most wealthy earners in Britain— a move that she quickly reversed after it was met with anger from the public and politicians alike. London correspondent Karla Adam explains Truss’s political ideologies and how these decisions could lead to a political power shake-up in the U.K.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | The right thing to do is morally and economically. |
| 0:10.0 | Morally, because the state doesn't spend its own money, it spends the people's money. |
| 0:16.0 | Economically, because if people keep more of their own money, they're inspired to do more of what they do best. |
| 0:23.0 | That's what grows the economy. |
| 0:26.0 | On Wednesday, Britain's new Prime Minister Liz Truss addressed her party at the annual Conservative Conference in Birmingham. |
| 0:33.0 | During this speech, she mostly talked about what people expected. |
| 0:37.0 | Her agenda, which is to lower taxes and encourage people to invest back into the economy. |
| 0:42.0 | What people are now calling Trussonomics. |
| 0:45.0 | When the government plays too big a role, people feel smaller. |
| 0:49.0 | High taxes mean you feel it's less worthwhile, working that extra hour, |
| 0:54.0 | going for a better job or setting your own business. |
| 0:58.0 | That's my friends, is why we are cutting taxes. |
| 1:07.0 | There was a ton of clapping from the audience, and at points it sounded like she was taking a victory lap. |
| 1:12.0 | But the thing is, that couldn't be further from the truth. |
| 1:16.0 | Because when Truss implemented some of her tax cuts a few weeks ago, it caused chaos. |
| 1:24.0 | The British power in folks has hit its lowest ever level against the US dollar. |
| 1:29.0 | The Bank of England has said that it will buy as many long dated government bonds as required between now and October 14. |
| 1:36.0 | So this is a window as it looks to stabilize financial markets. |
| 1:40.0 | It's launching a temporary UK government bond buying program to try to get long term borrowing costs down. |
| 1:47.0 | Well it came after a rare rebuke from the International Monetary Fund, |
| 1:51.0 | one of the world's most important financial institutions, which warned that the government's plans for tax cuts are risky, |
| 1:57.0 | and they could accelerate inflation and increase inequality. |
... |
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