Rishi Sunak appointed UK’s PM; world leaders welcome new premier
Rishi Sunak has been appointed Prime Minister of the UK and First Lord of the Treasury.
Sunak, the country’s first British-Asian premier, met with King Charles III at Buckingham Palace, after which he delivered his first speech outside 10 Downing Street.
“I’ve just been to Buckingham Palace and accepted His Majesty the King’s invitation to form a government in his name. Right now, our country is facing a profound economic crisis,” he said. “I will place economic stability and confidence at the heart of this government’s agenda,” Sunak added.
Sunak was announced leader of the Conservative Party on October 24, after rival Penny Mordaunt failed to secure enough support.
An erstwhile hedge fund partner, Sunak has taken the reins from Liz Truss, who resigned from the country’s top job last week. Truss extended her support to Sunak post his appointment as Conservative Party head.
Meanwhile, congratulatory messages as well as those of support have poured in from across the world. Ukraine President, Volodymyr Zelensky, congratulated Sunak on taking office. Narendra Modi, Prime Minister of India, also welcomed the new premier. Irish PM Micheál Martin said that he ‘looked forward to working’ with Sunak.
