Former British Prime Minister Liz Truss said she didn’t have time to listen to President Biden’s comments that his budget was a “mistake” in October because she was too busy tackling energy and security issues, according to sources. relationships.
Biden said on Oct. 15, 2022, that Truss’ push to cut taxes for his country’s top incomes was a “mistake.”
Truss was forced to scrap substantial parts of her tax plan that week amid market turmoil and dwindling public confidence.
British Prime Minister Liz Truss addresses the media on Downing Street in London on Thursday 20 October 2022. (AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali)
While eating ice cream with reporters in Oregon, Biden broke his silence.
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“I wasn’t the only one who thought it was a mistake,” he said. “I think about the idea of cutting taxes on the super rich at a time when – anyway, I didn’t agree with the policy, but it’s up to Britain to make that judgement, not me.”
The Daily Express in the UK reported that Truss took part in her first televised interview with Spectator TV’s Katy Balls and Fraser Nelson since stepping down as Prime Minister, and was asked where she was when she learned of Biden’s criticism .
President Biden speaks at the White House. (Fox News)
“It’s been a pretty busy time Katy, so I can’t remember exactly what I was doing,” Truss reported. “But we had gone through Her Majesty the Queen’s very difficult death and funeral
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“I had actually stopped by and met President Biden at the United Nations,” she added. “We were dealing then with energy issues, but also with very serious security issues – the clatter of Russian sabers – so I didn’t really have time to call President Biden or worry about his comments because we had to realize what was a very difficult situation.”
Truss also reportedly told hosts of the TV show that the UK needs to do things differently to correct its low economic growth over the past 10 years. He also warned that the UK was falling behind other countries, adding: “There is no doubt there is a problem.”
Truss initially pushed to eliminate the top tax bracket in the UK, effectively cutting taxes for citizens earning more than $168,000 a year. While it scrapped that plan in early October, it did little to stabilize markets.
He ultimately fired his Treasury chief and longtime friend, Kwasi Kwarteng, while also reneging on a promise to reverse a corporate tax hike.
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The value of the British pound plunged to near parity with the US dollar when Kwarteng first announced Truss’ tax cut plan in late September. Truss’s backtracking succeeded in raising the value of the pound from $1.03 to $1.12.
Anders Hagstrom contributed to the chronicle of this story.
