In “The World Beyond OX1”, the The Blue’s Global Affairs team explores some of the most interesting stories from around the world.
Liz Truss Resigns
Earlier this week, Liz Truss resigned as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and is therefore set to become the shortest serving PM ever, having spent only 44 days in the top job of British politics. In her resignation statement she said: “I cannot deliver the mandate on which I was elected by the Conservative Party”. This comes after weeks of turmoil after her government’s Mini-budget and the ensuing u-turns resulting from that with the firing of long-term Truss ally, Kwasi Kwarteng, as Chancellor of the Exchequer, being the most striking and notable u-turn.
Truss having resigned, another Tory Leadership Contest ensues. In the first round, candidates will need to get the backing of 100 MPs by Monday, the 24th of October. Given that there are currently 357 Tory MPs, this means that only three candidates will be able to stand – if that many candidates end up making it to the first round at all. If there is more than one candidate who gets the backing of at least 100 MPs, the election goes to the Tory membership, who will get the chance to vote by email (instead of by postal ballot) with the results due to be announced on Friday, the 28th of October.. The the three main candidates are thought to be Boris Johnson, Rishi Sunak, and Penny Mordaunt.
Sturgeon’s Plan for Independence
Nicola Sturgeon, the First Minister of Scotland, has stated that she wants a referendum on Scottish independence next October. The UK government has rejected this proposal, but Sturgeon has recently laid out her economic plan for an independent Scotland. Some key points from the her plan include:
A new currency: Sturgeon has said that Scotland will switch to a new currency “when the economic conditions are right” if they secure independence. The change of currency would take some time, but Sturgeon wants to set up a central bank to act as the Scottish Government’s banker.
European Union: A majority of the Scottish population voted to remain in the EU in 2016, and Sturgeon plans on relying on Europe as a political and economic ally. This would be achieved through increasing immigration and trade between Scotland and EU nations.
Border checks: An independent Scotland would create a border between England and Scotland. Sturgeon plans a “best of both worlds agreement” for both countries where people can still travel between the two countries without passports.
Debts: Sturgeon would agree to pay an annual “solidarity payment” as contribution to the UK debts without taking any of the debts onto an independent Scotland’s own books. Sturgeon argues that there are no legal requirements for Scotland to help with the debts, but there is a moral responsibility that will help preserve relations between the UK and Scotland.
Renewable energy: £20 billion, which has been generated through the oil industry, is to be invested in renewable energy and inclusive growth. This will come from the “Building a New Scotland Fund”.
20th Chinese Communist Party Congress
The 20th Chinese Communist Party congress is the first since term limits for party leaders were removed, and the congress confirms Xi Jinping as the most powerful Chinese leader since Mao Zedong. The congress gathers around 2,000 delegates who represent 100 million Communist party members, but they are viewed as rubber-stamps who simply confirm the continuation of Xi’s leadership. One key point of discussion was China’s development over the next five years due to the economic pressures of Covid-19 and the fallout from the war in Ukraine.
Another key point is Chinese involvement in Taiwan. Beijing has just conducted a crackdown on Hong Kong, and Xi sees control over Taiwan as a key part of his legacy and a requirement for China. The use of military force to take control of Taiwan has not been ruled out. This places the US in an increasingly difficult situation, as Joe Biden has recently promised to defend Taiwan in the events of an attack, upending the prior policy of “strategic ambiguity”.
China Seeks Retired RAF Pilots
It has emerged that China’s Peoples’ Liberation Army has recruited around 30 retired Royal Air Force (RAF) pilots and is paying them as much as $270,000 per annum. The New York Times stated that former British pilots – with experience in all modern jets except the F-35 – have been recruited via the Test Flying Academy based in South Africa. Although the exact nature of the training Chinese pilots are receiving remains unknown, the Ministry of Defence publicly stated that these former RAF pilots could be prosecuted under the Official Secrets Act. The Ministry also tweeted that these pilots were ‘eroding the UK’s defence advantage’ since these pilots were allowing the Chinese to modernise their air force and learn of British standards.
The Minister for the Armed Forces, James Heappey, stated in an interview with Sky News that the involvement of ex-RAF pilots had been a “concern within the MOD for a number of years” and that warnings had been given to the 30 individuals involved. He went onto say that “there is no secret in their [the Chinese] attempt to gain access to our secrets” and that the government were looking to pass a law forbidding former pilots from undertaking such work without MOD approval.
China has denied the recruitment efforts.