Shehbaz felicitates Liz Truss as she wins vote to become next British PM

Election reflects the high confidence placed by Tory membership in her vision and policies, says premier

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Monday felicitated Liz Truss who will become Britain's next premier after winning a leadership race for the governing Conservative party.

After weeks of an often bad-tempered and divisive leadership contest, Truss, currently the foreign minister, defeated former finance minister Rishi Sunak in a vote of Conservative Party members, winning by 81,326 votes to 60,399.

"I extend my felicitations to @trussliz on being elected leader of the Conservative Party," the premier wrote on his official Twitter handle.

He said that the election reflects the high confidence placed by Tory membership in her vision and policies.

I extend my felicitations to @trussliz on being elected leader of the Conservative Party. The election reflects the high confidence placed by Tory membership in her vision and policies.

— Shehbaz Sharif (@CMShehbaz) September 5, 2022

"I will deliver a bold plan to cut taxes and grow our economy," Truss said after the result was announced. "I will deliver on the energy crisis, dealing with people's energy bills, but also dealing with the long-term issues we have on energy supply."

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Truss takes over as the country faces a cost of living crisis, industrial unrest, a recession and war in Europe, where Britain has been a leading backer of Ukraine. She appeared to rule out another national election for the next two years, saying she would win a great victory for her party in 2024.

She succeeds Boris Johnson, who was forced to announce his resignation in July after months of scandal saw support for his administration drain away.

He will travel to Scotland to meet Queen Elizabeth on Tuesday to officially tender his resignation. Truss will follow him and be asked to form a government by the monarch.