In his first speech as Chancellor of the Exchequer, Nadhim Zahawi is expected to reassure the City of London that the government will get inflation back under control.
In a speech to the City, Mr Zahawi will say the country should be “confident” the government can get a handle on inflation as the cost-of-living pressure on households continues to bite.
He will also promise that the government is dealing with the “task in hand”, early released excerpts of his speech show.
The recently installed chancellor, fresh from his ill-fated bid to become Conservatives leader, will deliver the speech as the remaining candidates to replace Boris Johnson clash over proposed tax cuts.
Mr Zahawi's priorities for the coming months will be to control inflation, create the conditions for a private-sector recovery and a “post-Brexit vision” for the financial services industry.
“That means delivering sound public finances to avoid pushing up demand still further, providing help for households as they deal with the worst price rises in over a generation, and where we can, easing the supply constraints that are the underlying cause of high inflation,” he will say.
“The country should feel confident that we can, and we will, get inflation back under control.”
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Nadhim Zahawi has been appointed Chancellor of the Exchequer by British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, replacing Rishi Sunak. AFP -
Mr Zahawi, 55, inherits an economy that is heading for a sharp slowdown or even a recession, and will face immediate pressure to do more to help struggling taxpayers. PA -
Mr Zahawi was previously education secretary and was replaced by Michelle Donelan. PA -
Mr Zahawi with Portugal's President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa during a visit to Imperial College London in June. PA -
Mr Zahawi answers questions from pupils during a visit to Manor Park Primary School in Sutton in May. PA -
Mr Zahawi makes a statement in the House of Commons in March. PA -
Mr Zahawi attends the Cop26 summit in Glasgow, Scotland, in November. Getty Images -
Mr Zahawi holds a media briefing on the coronavirus pandemic at Downing Street in June 2021. Mr Zahawi was appointed minister in charge of the Covid-19 vaccine rollouts in 2020. Getty Images -
Conservative London mayor candidate Shaun Bailey and Mr Zahawi on the final day of local election campaigning in May 2021. Getty Images -
Mr Zahawi visits the Cullimore independent community chemist in Edgware in January last year after it became the first pharmacy in London to offer the Covid-19 vaccination. Getty Images -
Mr Zahawi stands next to Carrie Symonds at the 2019 Conservative Party conference in Manchester. Getty Images -
Former prime minister David Cameron and Mr Zahawi at the Conservative Party conference in Birmingham in 2010. Getty Images
Seizing the opportunities created by Brexit will also dominate the speech.
“Our objective is clear: we want to make sure the UK remains the most open, inclusive, welcoming, competitive, safe and transparent place to do financial services business in the world,” Mr Zahawi will say.
He will also commit to repealing “hundreds of pieces of retained EU law and replacing them with a coherent and agile approach to financial regulation that is right for us”.
Among those reforms will be changed regulatory requirements for insurance companies and groups to ensure “UK insurers have more flexibility to invest in long-term assets like infrastructure”, and to increase “the competitiveness of our capital markets”.
“That’s how we’ll maintain our position as one of the most dynamic financial centres in the world,” Mr Zahawi will say.
He will stress that, despite the “short-term uncertainty” caused by Mr Johnson’s resignation as Tory leader, the work of the government continues, pledging “stability, reassurance and continuity”.
“We are steadying the ship. We are stabilising the economy. We are getting on with the task at hand,” Mr Zahawi is expected to say.
“I know where the best ideas, the most effective delivery, the new growth and the new jobs are going to come from, the wealth creators and risk takers.
“So our top priority must be to grow the economy by unleashing the power of enterprise – to create the conditions for business to invest, innovate and grow.”
