After purchasing political breathing room with her address to the Tory conference, Liz Truss will now call on European leaders to help ‘keep the lights on’ during winter.
The PM will meet with colleagues at a meeting in Prague, including French President Emmanuel Macron.
As the impasse with Russia fuels concerns about shortages in the next months, she will urge the group to concur that gas and energy connections between nations must be maintained accessible.
The plea is being made amid concerns that Norway may decide to shut down its interconnectors with the UK and the EU in order to prevent blackouts for its own citizens.
Norway has the ability to deliver 1.4 gigawatts (GW) of power to Britain through a cable to Northumberland, which is a crucial component of National Grid’s backup plans.
After a Conservative convention marred by squabbling over tax rates and welfare cutbacks, Ms. Truss is concentrating on averting a winter catastrophe.
Following a strong speech to the party faithful outlining her true-blue vision for the nation, the premier has more wiggle space.
MPs have cautioned that there may be an effort to “throw her out” if polls continue to indicate a significant advantage for Labour.
This morning, Nadine Dorries, a former cabinet minister, reiterated her call for the PM to adhere to Boris Johnson’s platform.
I get that we need to rocket-boost development, but you don’t accomplish that by tossing the baby out with the bathwater, Ms. Dorries told The Times. You don’t win elections by veering to the right and giving Keir Starmer’s flag the center stage.
We will undoubtedly face a wipeout similar to that of Stephen Harper if we continue on this course. She has probably heard and will pause and reconsider.
Justin Trudeau defeated former Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper in the 2015 election.
Even while they admitted it was a “low threshold,” a senior MP who was sympathetic told MailOnline that the most important thing was that she had “get through” her speech.
The former minister added, “There is no question she has bought herself a little of room,” but he also forewarned that significant conflicts with rebels in Westminster were yet to come.
The key was to complete the task at hand so that you could return to the meeting and bang some heads together.
Less upbeat was a former Cabinet minister who called Ms. Truss “deluded” and “incompetent.”
Never before have I seen the Tory party in such a plight. It makes me think of John Mayor’s last months.
She will have to go. Just a matter of time, really. The Red Wall MPs now have a taste for disobedience. If they see that Liz Truss is unable to keep them in their seats, they will eject her, starting a domino effect.
“I believe she will give in on perks.” She is going to have to give ground on something that she is digging in on.
In addition, Ms. Truss is under criticism for severing ties with Isaac Levido, an Australian political consultant who was crucial to the victory in the 2019 election.
Former No. 10 communications director Lee Cain called it a “monumental miscalculation” considering that Mr. Levido was a key player in the “greatest electoral campaign in decades.”
After speaking with him at a UN session in New York last month, Ms. Truss is anticipated to see Mr. Macron for a bilateral discussion later.
Ms. Truss’s discussions with Mr. Macron and Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte will center on migration and seek to advance cooperation efforts to dismantle people-trafficking groups, according to Downing Street.
No. 10 said that, in light of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the Prime Minister would urge nations to take action more rapidly to reduce Europe’s dependency on Russian energy supplies.
The first plenary session in Prague is anticipated to hear Ms. Truss declare: “Europe is confronting its largest crisis since the Second World War.” And we have united and resolutely confronted it as a team.
We must remain steadfast in order to guarantee that Ukraine wins this conflict as well as to address the strategic issues that it has brought to light.
Despite the UK exiting the EU, Ms. Truss will work to emphasize the country’s involvement in European issues, especially Ukraine.
The menace was allowed to linger for far too long, the prime minister will declare. We are finally confronting Putin’s hostility head-on at this point.
“And we should use the same strategy with regard to the various difficulties that lie ahead of us, including enduring regional problems like energy and migration.
“It’s time to address the underlying reasons rather than the previous approach, which just dealt with the symptoms,” the speaker said.
According to Ms. Truss’ article in The Times, it is crucial for nations to help one another by maintaining the interconnectors operational even during times of scarcity.
According to her, “the underwater cables and pipelines that connect us with neighbors like France, Belgium, and the Netherlands” are used by the UK to deliver and receive both gas and electricity.
“Today, we must all make a commitment to maintaining those connections during the winter so that we can keep the lights on across the Continent.”
Ms. Truss is anticipated to have lunch with Petr Fiala, the president of the Czech Republic.
Her choice to participate has surprised some since, as foreign secretary, she had doubts about the conference.