Welcome Rishi Sunak, the first UK PM of Indian origin, in ‘worst than hell’ time

Indian, all over the world, a one & quarter billion here in India and about 35 millions spread in more than 200 countries around the world, overjoyed when they came to know that first time in the British parliamentary history, a south Asian origin person is officially going to enter the 10 Downing street, the official residence & office of the British Prime Minister. Even the Leader of Opposition in British Parliament MP Keir Starmer welcomed him during the PMQ, the first day of UK PM in Parliament with the same fact, saying it shows the victory of British democracy and respect for its multicultural value system, deeply embedded, but also remind him what he said about the economic reforms while his campaign for leader of the conservative party in British Parliament against Liz Truss.

For Conservative party, popularly known as ‘Tories’, it’s the testing time as Britain is going through in ‘Worst than the Hell’ time period nowadays as British commoners are saying out of frustration while struggling in their day to day life. Its not the time for British people to enjoy, they known for. The rate of inflation is touching record high surpassing 20%. The household energy bills are in average spike 200 pound sterling per month which stands about 19000 Indian rupees. Same is happening with the grocery bills as a British household has to spend 300 pound more per week in such situation, making it about a lakh and quarter in Indian rupees per month. Its now hard for a working Londoner to comminute daily from home to office and back as transportation cost also experienced a steep hike.

Its not only the domestic front that UK is struggling economically, on global front Britain is at its worst. British economy is in doldrums, not much better than the time of ‘The Great economic depression of 1929’, and that’s why British people is saying that they are facing the ‘Worst than the hell’ time, and there are reasons for this. The credit of British economy is at historically record low, British currency Pound Sterling is much weakens against the US dollar. The global position of British economy is slipping fast and it is predicted that soon India and other countries will overpass the Britain as economic superpower, and Britain will be out of Top Five economies of the World.

At domestic level, the economic conditions are so bad that people demanded that the free meals at schools scheme for primary classes’ kids should be extended up to high school level, so that their children can have at least one nutritious meal in a day. This is a sad example that how much a common British citizen is suffering in this worst economic slowdown.

Now the challenges before the Indian origin British PM Rishi Sunak are to take back the British economy on track, which has been off track since the Covid-19 outbreak; hold the rising inflation, cut down the steep hike in insurance & loan payments, redesign the Tax system so that it can benefits all, not just super rich; and bring back the glory for Britain as economic superpower. And yes, its not that easy for MP Rishi Sunak, the former chancellor of Treasury in Boris Johnson cabinet, though he is an economic graduate and MBA from prestigious Stanford University.

-Nimish Kumar

(The author, a Delhi School of Economics Scholar, is a senior journalist covering global economy & foreign affairs)