After a long wait and fierce battle between Tory leadership hopefuls, Liz Truss will become the country’s third female prime minister after securing victory in the leadership race.
Rishi Sunak, MP for Richmond, missed out on the opportunity with the foreign secretary securing a majority of 57.4 percent compared to the former chancellor’s 42.6 percent.
Ms Truss, the Foreign Secretary, used her victory speech to indicate she would not be triggering an early general election, instead pledging to secure “a great victory for the Conservative Party in 2024”.
She won by a significant margin, but the victory over Mr Sunak’s was slimmer than in other recent contests.
The Northern Echo took to the streets of Richmond to ask residents how they felt about the result.
Stuart and Shirly Goodrick, visiting Richmond from Sunderland, said they were “not happy with the result” and stressed that the county was “doomed.”
Mr Goodrick said: “No I’m not happy with the result, frankly, I think we were doomed either way, unfortunately, both candidates were talking to the tiny minority of conservative members who were their basic constituencies for this election.
“They weren’t addressing the country as a whole and what I have heard from what they have said is frankly disturbing, very worrying and really displays their utter contempt for British working people.
“What I’m hoping for is a very sharpish general election which we can get a Labour government in.”
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Ms Goodrick said the Conservative government will “say and do anything to keep in power.”
She added: “I don’t think they have any scruples whatsoever and whatever it takes they will do it and we are at the dregs of politics.
“We are facing the same kind of depravity, divisiveness, phony nationalism, hate-stirring that frankly were tactics that Hitler used if I’m being honest.”
Mr Goodrick stressed that the result had “scared the hell out” of him, after recently he has been forced to second guess as to whether he can afford to retire.
He said: “It scares me, the people that are at the bottom already, honestly I think there’s going to be an awful lot of suicide in the next six months.
Shirly added: “They’ve attacked free-speech, they’re removing the rights for people to go on strike, they’d already undermined working right and things like unfair dismissal or wrongful dismissal.
“They’re just trying to trash human rights because they’re trying to make money out of it.
Stuart added: “I can only hope that people realise that what they have to do is organise.
“In some ways, it’s the early days of the Labour party and unionism and frankly, being in a union is a dirty word at the moment and a lot of that is because of Thatcher, but I think people are starting to realise that the only way they are going to change anything is by organising.
Colin Phillips from York said he doesn’t “trust any of them” and he also wasn’t particularly bothered by the result.
He added: “They promise the earth to get in, and once they’re in they go back on it, Rishi is a prime example.
“The triple-lock pensions, I’m a pensioner and he went back on that so I can’t trust him, Liz Truss can’t do any worse than him going back on his word.
“I’m a pensioner, he promised it and he hasn’t provided it.”
Mr Phillips added: “The cost of living crisis is a big issue as well, they want the money now, they’ve waited for five-weeks while they’ve fought it out. It should have happened five-weeks ago, not in five-week’s time.
“He’s promising one thing, she’s promising another so who do you believe, there’s no money so we’ll have to borrow it, put the taxes up.
“Think of the people who can’t afford anything, they’re relying on foodbanks and stuff.
“I don’t trust any of them basically.”
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Asked whether he felt Liz Truss would be good for the North East Mr Phillips said they both “talk a good story” but do nothing.
He added: ”He’s promising one thing, she’s promising another so who do you believe, there’s no money so we’ll have to borrow it and put the taxes up.
“Think of the people who can’t afford anything, they’re relying on foodbanks and stuff.”
Tina from Darlington admitted she was “indifferent” to the result but vowed to never vote conservative again after recent events.
She said: “I would welcome a general election and I think I would vote labour in another election.
“Purely because Liberal Democrats can’t get enough of a vote to be powerful enough to do anything and neither can any of the other parties, so you’re looking at a toss-up between the two.
“I wouldn’t vote conservative again.”
Steve Osler from Harrogate said: “No I’m not a conservative at all so I’m not very happy with the result.
“After Boris Johnson and the mess he made of it, as I say I’m not a conservative by any stretch of the imagination so I’m not holding out much hope.
Mr Osler also said he would welcome a general election but doesn’t think it will happen.
He added: “I can remember when Gordon Brown became Prime Minister and David Cameron called for a general election and he didn’t get one.
“We know that Kier Starmer will congratulate Liz Truss on becoming Prime Minister and he won’t get one, it follows the pattern.
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“I don’t hold out much hope for this levelling up business, again, I think a lot of it was window dressing.
“We’ll see what happens in the next few years, whenever the next general election is due, we’ll see what happens but I’m definitely not holding out much hope for that either.”
Peter Baker from Whitby said he would respect the result of the vote but ideally wanted Borish Johnson to return.
He said: “I would have preferred Boris to keep on going, but they’ve ejected him and it was fair election so yeah, I’ll go a long with it.
“There was no choice between them really, I didn’t have a preference for either one.
“If the vote went for one then that’s fine, because it’s a democratic society and we’ll go along with it.
“I don’t think we need a general election at the moment, I don’t think it’s necessary, but come the time we’ll vote and see what happens then and get Boris back in."
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