Tories would have fared better under me, Truss says

Liz Truss has said the Conservatives would have done better in July's general election if she had stayed on as prime minister, during an often freewheeling one-off appearance at the Tory conference.

- Peter Walker

Truss, who stepped down after 49 days in Downing Street, said that if she had had the support of her MPs, and if the financial "establishment" had not undermined her 2022 minibudget, she would have delivered lower taxes, more growth and low energy costs due to fracking.

Truss declined to back any of the four Tory leadership candidates, saying she preferred Argentina's farright president, Javier Milei. She also refused to rule out trying to return to parliament, saying: "I'm not going to give up on this fight."