Rishi Sunak on UK PM bid: Judge me on my record, not my wealth

Rishi Sunak said he did not judge people by their bank accounts, he judged them by their character and hoped others would do the same.

British Treasury chief Rishi Sunak speaks at the launch of his campaign to be Conservative Party leader and Prime Minister, at the Queen Elizabeth II Centre in London, July 12, 2022. (AP)

Rishi Sunak, a leading candidate to replace Boris Johnson as Britain’s prime minister, dismissed suggestions on Thursday that he was too rich to run the country during an economic downturn, saying he had the experience to take on tough challenges.

Sunak, the former finance minister whose resignation last week helped to trigger the fall of Johnson’s government, said he did not judge people by their bank accounts, he judged them by their character and hoped others would do the same.

Asked if he understood the financial pressures in the country, he told BBC Radio: “When the pandemic hit, I understood full well the impact it could have on millions of people up and down the country.”

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Sunak said his first economic priority if he becomes prime minister will be tackling inflation, not the tax cuts pledged by some of his rivals in the race to replace Johnson.

“I think our number one economic priority is to tackle inflation and not make it worse,” Sunak told BBC Radio on Thursday.

“I will get taxes down in this parliament but I’m going to do so responsibly, because I don’t cut taxes to win elections, I win elections to cut taxes,” he added.

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