Sunak Faces Economic Misery Similar to Before 1997 Tory Defeat
- Indicator tracks combined impact of unemployment and inflation
- Figures add to reasons for Sunak hold election later in autumn
Rishi Sunak
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Rishi Sunak’s government is facing the same levels of economic misery that led to the Conservative Party’s defeat in 1997, helping explain why the prime minister plans to delay the next election until late this year.
The Misery Index, created in the 1970s to capture the combined impacts of unemployment and inflation, is likely to improve over the next 12 months in the UK as price pressures dissipate. For now, and during Liz Truss’s brief term as premier in 2022, it’s showing its worst levels since John Major was ejected from office.