‘Honest’ Sunak mocked for reminder on spending rise with ‘Ready for Rishi’ campaign video

Rishi Sunak's campaign video mocked by Rinder

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Mr Sunak, who entered the race to be the next leader of the Conservative Party and Prime Minister on Friday, revealed his leadership bid through a slick video and bold logo. The three-minute footage sees the Richmond MP walk future voters through his family history and emphasise the more humble aspects of his background. The logo, which carries the slogan “Ready for Rishi”, is reflective of his work on Britain’s finance front, GB News’ Darren Grimes said.

The line underneath Ms Sunak’s name on the black and blue design is a wedge – going from a thin end to a thick end.

Mr Grimes said in a seemingly mocking tone: “In showing us what’s happened to taxes and public spending under Rishi Sunak via his logo, he’s arguably the most honest candidate of them all.”

The remark appears to make reference to Mr Sunak’s policies as Chancellor. He came in as a Tory, who would be expected to dish out little, but massively increased the spending during Covid. He has also imposed tax rises.

Mr Sunak was the second among a cascade of Conservative politicians to resign last week following a string of Government scandals under the leadership of Prime Minister Boris Johnson.

His move, and that of dozens of his colleagues, came over the Prime Minister’s mishandling of allegations surrounding former Deputy Chief Whip Chris Pincher, who has been accused of groping two men while intoxicated at a London nightclub.

In his resignation letter, Mr Sunak told Mr Johnson “the public rightly expect Government to be conducted properly, competently and seriously”.

He added that he recognised “this may be my last ministerial job, but I believe these standards are worth fighting for and that is why I am resigning”.

However, Mr Sunak promptly got tipped as a potential candidate to next enter No10, meaning new opportunities in politics might well be ahead for the 42-year-old.

Mr Sunak only became an MP in 2015 and was Chancellor of the Exchequer by February 2020.

However, even though he has a well-built personal brand, he has already faced criticism among fellow MPs for indicating he will focus more on fiscal caution than immediate tax cuts, with his video taking aim at other candidates who may offer “comforting fairytales” rather than economic truths.

In his candidacy announcement, Mr Sunak did mention the economy by saying it was time to “rebuild” it while “restoring trust” and “reuniting the country”.

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The former chancellor said the “huge challenges” the UK faces are “the most serious for a generation” but pledged to ensure “the decisions we make today” will lead Britons to “the chance of a better future”.

He vowed: “I got into politics because I want everyone in this country to have those same opportunities, to be able to give their children a better future.”

As the race to choose a new Tory leader kicks off on Tuesday, with a new Prime Minister scheduled to be in place on September 5, Ms Sunak could have the best shot at retaining the Conservatives’ majority at the next general election, polling shows.

Research conducted by Ipsos this week found 31 percent of British adults think Mr Sunak would do well at Britain’s top job – the highest of any Tory contender.

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer was second with 30 percent, while former health secretary Sajid Javid who also resigned on Tuesday, was third with 29 percent.

According to the rules for the leadership election, MPs who put themselves forward to replace Mr Johnson will now need the backing of 20 other Tory MPs to get on to the ballot.

Candidates will then need at least 30 votes to proceed into the next round, chairman of the 1922 Committee Sir Graham Brady said. That would be just under 10 percent of Tory MPs.

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