Barely three weeks after her arrival in Downing Street, the ultra-liberal leader is already in turmoil, accumulating bad polls and financial market sanctions.

As criticism mounts even within her majority, Liz Truss emerged from several days of silence to defend the plan that caused the storm on Friday, including aid for households in the face of soaring prices and all-out reduction of taxes favoring richer, all financed by debt.

"We had to take decisive action to help people for this winter and the next. (...) We had to take urgent action to grow our economy, to move Britain forward, and also to deal with inflation “said Liz Truss on the BBC.

"It means making tough and controversial decisions, but I'm ready to do that as prime minister," she added.

Estimated by economists at an amount of 100 to 200 billion pounds, but whose financing and impact remain unclear and not quantified by the government, they have sown disorder on the markets and provoked an exceptional warning from the International Monetary Fund which explicitly asked London to rectify the situation.

Criticizing risky "unfunded" measures in a context of high inflation, the IMF asked London in particular to reconsider measures concerning the highest incomes, which risk "increasing inequalities" already high in the United Kingdom .

A signal of investor mistrust for British assets, the pound sterling plunged to an all-time low of $1.0350 on Monday and has risen only slightly since.

The pound fell again on Thursday against the dollar.

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The interest rates at which the British State is indebted have soared.

In an attempt to calm the storm, the central bank was forced to intervene in the markets, two days after assuring it would not act until its next meeting in early November, citing "real risks to financial stability".

Already in recession

"Of course, there are a lot of people with a lot of different opinions. But I don't think anyone disputes the fact that we have to take measures to deal with a very, very difficult economic situation," insisted Liz Truss.

The leader cited the highest level of taxation in 70 years and the international situation with the Russian invasion of Ukraine which sent energy prices soaring and caused a surge in inflation

The United Kingdom, which has the highest inflation rate in the G7 at almost 10%, is already in recession according to the Bank of England.

Former Bank of England governor Mark Carney also criticized the government's measures on the BBC on Thursday, saying the plan had caused a "dramatic" turnaround in financial markets.

"Unfortunately, having a partial budget, under these circumstances - difficult global economy, difficult position in financial markets, working against the grain with the Bank - has led to some pretty dramatic moves in financial markets," he said. he said.

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Silent so far, Finance Minister Kwasi Kwarteng has simply promised more detailed budget measures in November, but given the scale of the crisis there are growing calls from the political class to immediately recall MPs to Westminster.

Parliament is currently in recess for the season of annual political party congresses, after a summer of paralysis of power following the resignation of Boris Johnson and then national mourning after the death of Queen Elizabeth II.

© 2022 AFP