UWI lecturer: New UK PM's appointment 'historic'

International relations lecturer at UWI Dr Indira Rampersad believes the appointment of Rishi Sunak as UK Prime Minister is "historic." But she warns that given the state of the UK, he has a "mammoth task" ahead of him.

Last Thursday, British prime minister Liz Truss resigned after just 45 days in office, and on Monday Sunak, 42, was chosen by Conservative MPs as the party's new leader and hence the new prime minister. He was born in Southampton to parents of Indian heritage and is a Hindu.

Speaking with Newsday on Tuesday, Rampersad said Sunak's appointment is "interesting" for different reasons.

"One of those is that he's from the Conservative Party and that he managed to rally the support of some 155, I believe, MPs – most of them white...So it would suggest that, at least at the parliamentary level, UK politicians are transcending their ethnic barrier."

Asked if she was surprised by his appointment, she said no, since he was previously in the running for the role. Sunak lost to Truss in September.

What surprised Rampersad, she said, was "the overwhelming support from parliamentarians.

"Usually, the ethnic minority, that's supported by the Labour or Democratic Party – as in the US. ..To parallel it with Barrack Obama (former US president), he hailed from the Democratic Party – left wing – whereas this one is from the right-wing Conservative Party.

"So there is a little difference there and the trend is, really, that the minority leaders come from the left-wing rather than the right-wing party."

She said the UK economy and its politics are in "shambles.

"Politically, socially and economically, the country is in a mess, and he has a mammoth task ahead of him.

"So while economically savvy, it would be interesting to see how he manoeuvres the political dimensions of it, because that's what Liz Truss couldn't do."

On his religion and heritage, she said the Hindu community is "very pleased," adding that his appointment's happening on Divali was almost like a gift.

"For the Caribbean, it's important as a long-standing member of the Commonwealth and ex-colony of Britain. So that will always be significant, and we have quite a sizeable diaspora in the UK.

"So it's not just the Indo/Hindu Caribbean population that will be pleased, but also across the world where there's an Indian diaspora."

She said Indians are very proud of his achievements as he has worked very hard to earn what he has.

"So now it's left to be seen if he can do better than Liz Truss, better than Boris Johnson, better than Theresa May."