Favorite to succeed Boris Johnson, Liz Truss says Brits should ‘work harder’

In a recording revealed by the Guardian, the contender to succeed Boris Johnson believes Britons’ low productivity is “partly a result of a state of mind and attitude. It is a matter of work culture”.

Liz Truss, who aspires to succeed Boris Johnson as leader of the Conservative Party and the British government, is attacking the work culture of her citizens, who should “work more”, in a conversation leaked on Tuesday. “There is a fundamental problem with the relationship to work” in the UK, asserts Liz Truss, the outgoing foreign minister, in this recording published by the daily. Watchman on its website.

“If we want to become a richer and more prosperous country, that has to change. But I don’t think people are ready to do that,” she adds, in this conversation returning according to the newspaper at the time. It was ranked second in the Treasury, from 2017 to 2019.

The recording was revealed ahead of a televised meeting organized by the Conservative Party in Perth, Scotland, where Liz Truss and her latest challenger for party leadership, former Finance Minister Rishi Sunak, are set to answer questions from activists. Referring specifically to the 2016 Brexit vote, Liz Truss said: “We say it’s Europe that is causing these big problems, and it’s the immigrants.” “But what you have to do is work harder. It’s not a common message,” we keep hearing him say.

‘It’s very different in China’

For her, Brits’ low productivity results “in part from a state of mind and attitude. It’s really a matter of work culture. In China it’s quite different, I can tell you to secure it.” In a call with AFP on Tuesday, Liz Truss’ campaign team did not deny the veracity of these statements, which she said “lack context”.

“There is a need for increased productivity, which leads to better wages and a better quality of life for workers across the UK,” the source said. The publication of the recording comes as Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak campaign for the vote of conservative activists – some 200,000 – who have until September 2 to choose their new leader in a mail vote.

With the party securing a majority in Parliament, the winner will become prime minister, succeeding Boris Johnson who resigned in early July after multiple scandals. Ms. Truss is ahead in the polls. The result is expected to be announced on September 5.