Why a defeated Rishi Sunak suddenly seems so statesmanlike – Politics.co.uk

Speaking from the commons despatch box on Wednesday in response to the King’s Speech, Sunak reflected self-deprecatingly on his unlikely rise to power. He had just congratulated Labour MP Florence Eshalomi on seconding the motion to approve the Speech from the Throne, a parliamentary honour typically bestowed upon a rising star. Addressing the possibly ambitious opposite, Sunak noted that on the government benches “life comes at you fast.”

“Soon you might be fortunate enough to be tapped on the shoulder and be offered a junior ministerial role”, Sunak continued. “Then you’ll find yourself attending cabinet, then in the cabinet and then when the prime minister’s position becomes untenable you might end up being called to the highest office.

“And before you know it you have a bright future behind you and you’re left wondering whether you can credibly be an elder statesman at the age of 44”.

The green benches, on all sides of the House, guffawed. Watch for yourself here.

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Next, striking a serious tone, the interim Conservative leader congratulated Keir Starmer on his election victory. Acknowledging that Labour had tapped successfully into the public desire for change, Sunak declared: “It is right to begin by congratulating the prime minister on his decisive victory in the election. He deserves the goodwill of all of us in this House as he takes on the most demanding of jobs in the increasingly uncertain world in which we now live.”

Keir Starmer’s response was telling: “I want to thank the right honourable gentleman [opposite]. In every exchange that we’ve had since the election and in his words today, he has gone well beyond the usual standards of generosity.”

These well-mannered exchanges, suffice it to say, were not typical of Sunak and Starmer’s commons combat prior to the election — or indeed, throughout the election campaign itself. What then, explains this sudden change?

Well as prime minister, Rishi Sunak appeared to feel the weight of his office — and political expectation — rather more than his immediate predecessors. The collapse of Liz Truss’ administration, which Sunak referred to mockingly on Wednesday, was an immediate warning to her successor that failure would mean severe punishment.

Simultaneously, as PM, Sunak was tasked with saving the Conservatives from his predecessors’ political excesses, improving the party’s brand after months of scandalous debasement. After all, the burden of office will fall heavily on any incumbent — but Sunak, stricken with the direst of inheritances, seemed especially oppressed.

Of course it soon became clear, at first steadily and then suddenly, that Sunak was unable to right the Conservative Party’s political doom loop. In fact, during a disastrous election campaign defined by controversies and mistakes, the outgoing prime minister likely made matters worse — even far worse.

In this regard, it’s fair to say that the scale of Sunak’s challenge, and his inability to stand up to it, had an effect on his governing style. The futility of his efforts — and his premiership was undoubtedly effortful — appeared to inspire a certain peevishness in the then-PM, who privately rued his colleagues’ hostile manoeuvring and the apparent ingratitude of the public (according to reports, that is).

Sunak was ridiculed as “tetchy”, both politically — with his instinctive embrace of any ephemeral “wedge issue” — and personally, a consequence of his increasingly irascible style.

But removed from office, and its manifold burdens, the now-former prime minister’s tetchy days seem far behind him. His despatch box demeanour, reflected in his performance yesterday, is jovial but productive. His smile no longer feels forced, awkward or uneven. His job swap with Keir Starmer — in the most simple terms — appears to have made both men happier.

This is not to say Sunak is entirely enjoying his role as leader of the opposition — rewarding as it isn’t during the best of times, and certainly not following a historic defeat.

Rather, the former PM is reported to want to hand over to another interim leader. It’s an ultimately unsurprising desire, given the prevailing consensus within the Conservative parliamentary party points to a leadership contest sometime in the late autumn.

After all , were Sunak to hold on to the frontbench baton — supported by his interim cabinet — he would be forced to man the commons despatch box for months. But if the ex-prime minister’s recent performances are anything to go by, that could be best for both the Conservative Party and Sunak’s sakes.

As a gracious, productive opposition leader, the former PM could greatly elevate his position in both Westminster and, in time perhaps, national opinion. The Conservative Party, meanwhile, would retain an experienced, doughty operator — an individual who might ably guide his party through the torrid next few months.

The irony will not be lost on readers that Sunak, having risen to the apex of politics well before his time, would — in some other, more forgiving timeline — be the ideal individual to seize the reins of the Conservative Party in opposition. It’s an observation that stresses, ultimately, how much the Tories have lost to their psychodramatic antics in recent years.

Sunak’s political flaws as PM, in the large part, could be attributed to his lack of strategic nous and experience, traits that the unforgiving work of opposition inevitably spurs. (See, for instance, Keir Starmer). But already, at just 44, the ex-PM has already journeyed from rising hope to elder statesman — with any intervening period of achievement debatable. He’s playing his latest role, at least, rather well.

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