美国国家公共电台 NPR--The U.K. is waiting to see who will become its third prime minister this year

The U.K. is waiting to see who will become its third prime minister this year

Transcript¹

NPR's Leila Fadel talks to Andrew Palmer of The Economist², about the short tenure³ of British Prime Minister Liz Truss, and the country's political instability after Brexit.

LEILA FADEL, HOST:

You've seen them - all the lettuce⁴ jokes out of the U.K. comparing Liz Truss' short time as prime minister to the shelf life of a head of lettuce. In the lead-up to her resignation, a livestream from the British tabloid⁵ newspaper The Daily Star captured the world's attention - a head of iceberg⁶ lettuce, wearing a blond wig⁷ and googly eyes, next to a photo of the embattled prime minister. The caption⁸ asked, will Liz Truss outlast⁹ the lettuce? Well, she didn't. When Truss announced her resignation just 45 days into her time in office, the lettuce celebrated¹⁰ its win with British flags and star lights, and Truss became the shortest-serving prime minister in British history.

Well, we've got the man who inspired all these lettuce jokes when he made that first comparison in the pages of The Economist. Andrew Palmer is the Britain editor at The Economist, and he joins us now. Good morning, and welcome to the program.

ANDREW PALMER: Good morning, Leila. Love to be here.

FADEL: So all lettuce jokes aside, let's talk about why Liz Truss' tenure was such a mess.

PALMER: Yes, she is now possibly the worst prime minister we have ever had. That will be a debate for historians. But really, the thing that blew her up was a big minibudget, which she unveiled along with her chancellor¹¹ on September the 23. It was a package of unfunded tax cuts. There was no clear sense of how it would be paid for. The financial markets took fright. And ever since then, she's had to sort of systematically¹² U-turn, and that shorts her authority. Over time, her ability to control her party disintegrated¹³. And by yesterday, it became clear that there was absolutely no point to Liz Truss, and she had to resign - so a very brief and very unsuccessful tenure.

FADEL: Is she to blame alone, though, for the financial situation? It is a time where inflation is a problem across the continent, as are rising prices.

PALMER: That's totally fair. It is difficult globally at the moment. However, what Ms. Truss and her chancellor decided¹⁴ to do...

FADEL: Yeah.

PALMER: ...Was embark¹⁵ on a borrowing spree at the point that inflation was rising. So they stuck their heads above the parapet with a really, really risky¹⁶ fiscal¹⁷ strategy and in so doing made themselves a target. So it is true that interest rates are rising everywhere. It is true that cost of living is under threat and under pressure across Europe. But they absolutely exacerbated¹⁸ it. And there is now a premium¹⁹ on British government debt, which is referred to in the markets as a moron²⁰ premium, and that has been caused by what the British government did a few weeks ago.

FADEL: So what does this now mean for the Conservative Party, now a divided party, having to choose yet another prime minister? We're hearing the names include Boris Johnson, who had to leave in scandal, and Truss replaced him. What does it mean for the party?

PALMER: Yeah, the party is really in a kind of spiral at this point. They've been in power for 12 years. There's a sense of exhaustion²¹ around them. Ever since the Brexit vote in 2016, it's been riven by factionalism, and there's been a premium placed on ideological²² purity about Brexit. We are going to have had, you know, three prime ministers in the space of a matter of months very, very shortly. And it's not clear that whoever the new person is will be able to unify²³ this group. It's a very, very factional, unhappy party at this point. The only thing keeping it together is, you know, a sense that to go through this again would be totally ridiculous, and the pressure from the markets. They have to come up with a credible²⁴ fiscal plan under the new leader. And that pressure will concentrate minds.

FADEL: Do they have the public's trust, though, at this point with the chaos²⁵, with the political and financial chaos?

PALMER: Absolutely not. That has been sacrificed. The opposition²⁶ Labour Party has a huge lead in the polls, and if there was an election now, the Tories would be facing a landslide²⁷ defeat. They would have a crushing, crushing loss. However, the election timetable is in their gift, and they don't have to call one until as late as January 2025. It's possible that one could happen earlier if enough Tories decide that their government is so kind of inept²⁸ and so bad for the country that it's worth bringing on their own demise²⁹. But at the moment, we're not quite there yet.

FADEL: So let's talk about what happens next. What is the process now to choose the next prime minister, and how likely is it actually that Boris Johnson would come back?

PALMER: Yes, the Johnson word. So we have a very accelerated timetable now. So what happens is that by Monday, candidates within the parliamentary party have to have got at least 100 nominations³⁰ to enter the race. That's a very high bar. And what that means is that there's only a maximum of three can be in the race come Monday. It is possible that only one hits that bar, so we might know as soon as Monday who the next prime minister is. If, however, we get to two people who go head to head, then Tory party members will decide, and they must decide by the end of next week. So come what may, whether it's early or at the back end of next week, we will know who it is.

And as for who leads Britain next, Mr. Johnson is definitely in the frame. A lot of people feel that he was unfairly turfed out for various misdemeanors, dishonesty, for throwing parties during the lockdown era. They also think that he's a proven election winner and that he has a mandate³¹ because he was in charge of the government last time there was a general election. On the other hand, he's very, very divisive, and his chances of holding the party together are slim. So the other person to look out for is Rishi Sunak, former chancellor exchequer³², came second to Liz Truss over the summer, fiscally³³ prudent³⁴ and would probably reassure³⁵ the markets. It's probably down to those two.

FADEL: Andrew Palmer is the Britain editor for The Economist. Thank you so much for your time.

PALMER: Thank you.

1 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

2 economist   

n.经济学家，经济专家，节俭的人

参考例句：

• He cast a professional economist's eyes on the problem.他以经济学行家的眼光审视这个问题。
• He's an economist who thinks he knows all the answers.他是个经济学家，自以为什么都懂。

3 tenure   

n.终身职位；任期；(土地)保有权，保有期

参考例句：

• He remained popular throughout his tenure of the office of mayor.他在担任市长的整个任期内都深得民心。
• Land tenure is a leading political issue in many parts of the world.土地的保有权在世界很多地区是主要的政治问题。

4 lettuce   

n.莴苣；生菜

参考例句：

• Get some lettuce and tomatoes so I can make a salad.买些莴苣和西红柿，我好做色拉。
• The lettuce is crisp and cold.莴苣松脆爽口。

5 tabloid   

adj.轰动性的，庸俗的；n.小报，文摘

参考例句：

• He launched into a verbal assault on tabloid journalism.他口头对小报新闻进行了抨击。
• He believes that the tabloid press has behaved disgracefully.他认为小报媒体的行为不太光彩。

6 iceberg   

n.冰山，流冰，冷冰冰的人

参考例句：

• The ship hit an iceberg and went under.船撞上一座冰山而沉没了。
• The glacier calved a large iceberg.冰河崩解而形成一个大冰山。

7 wig   

n.假发

参考例句：

• The actress wore a black wig over her blond hair.那个女演员戴一顶黑色假发罩住自己的金黄色头发。
• He disguised himself with a wig and false beard.他用假发和假胡须来乔装。

8 caption   

n.说明，字幕，标题；v.加上标题，加上说明

参考例句：

• I didn't understand the drawing until I read the caption.直到我看到这幅画的说明才弄懂其意思。
• There is a caption under the picture.图片下边附有说明。

9 outlast   

v.较…耐久

参考例句：

• The great use of life is to spend it doing something that will outlast it.人生的充分利用就是为争取比人生更长久的东西而度过一生。
• These naturally dried flowers will outlast a bouquet of fresh blooms.这些自然风干的花会比一束鲜花更加持久。

10 celebrated   

adj.有名的，声誉卓著的

参考例句：

• He was soon one of the most celebrated young painters in England.不久他就成了英格兰最负盛名的年轻画家之一。
• The celebrated violinist was mobbed by the audience.观众团团围住了这位著名的小提琴演奏家。

11 chancellor   

n.(英)大臣；法官；(德、奥)总理；大学校长

参考例句：

• They submitted their reports to the Chancellor yesterday.他们昨天向财政大臣递交了报告。
• He was regarded as the most successful Chancellor of modern times.他被认为是现代最成功的财政大臣。

12 systematically   

adv.有系统地

参考例句：

• This government has systematically run down public services since it took office.这一屆政府自上台以来系统地削减了公共服务。
• The rainforest is being systematically destroyed.雨林正被系统地毀灭。

13 disintegrated   

v.（使）破裂[分裂，粉碎]，（使）崩溃( disintegrate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The plane disintegrated as it fell into the sea. 飞机坠入大海时解体了。
• The box was so old;it just disintegrated when I picked it up. 那箱子太破旧了，我刚一提就散了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

14 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

15 embark   

vi.乘船，着手，从事，上飞机

参考例句：

• He is about to embark on a new business venture.他就要开始新的商业冒险活动。
• Many people embark for Europe at New York harbor.许多人在纽约港乘船去欧洲。

16 risky   

adj.有风险的，冒险的

参考例句：

• It may be risky but we will chance it anyhow.这可能有危险，但我们无论如何要冒一冒险。
• He is well aware how risky this investment is.他心里对这项投资的风险十分清楚。

17 fiscal   

adj.财政的，会计的，国库的，国库岁入的

参考例句：

• The increase of taxation is an important fiscal policy.增税是一项重要的财政政策。
• The government has two basic strategies of fiscal policy available.政府有两个可行的财政政策基本战略。

18 exacerbated   

v.使恶化，使加重( exacerbate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The symptoms may be exacerbated by certain drugs. 这些症状可能会因为某些药物而加重。
• The drugs they gave her only exacerbated the pain. 他们给她吃的药只是加重了她的痛楚。 来自《简明英汉词典》

19 premium   

n.加付款；赠品；adj.高级的；售价高的

参考例句：

• You have to pay a premium for express delivery.寄快递你得付额外费用。
• Fresh water was at a premium after the reservoir was contaminated.在水库被污染之后，清水便因稀而贵了。

20 moron   

n.极蠢之人，低能儿

参考例句：

• I used to think that Gordon was a moron.我曾以为戈登是个白痴。
• He's an absolute moron!他纯粹是个傻子！

21 exhaustion   

n.耗尽枯竭，疲惫，筋疲力尽，竭尽，详尽无遗的论述

参考例句：

• She slept the sleep of exhaustion.她因疲劳而酣睡。
• His exhaustion was obvious when he fell asleep standing.他站着睡着了，显然是太累了。

22 ideological   

a.意识形态的

参考例句：

• He always tries to link his study with his ideological problems. 他总是把学习和自己的思想问题联系起来。
• He helped me enormously with advice on how to do ideological work. 他告诉我怎样做思想工作，对我有很大帮助。

23 unify   

vt.使联合，统一；使相同，使一致

参考例句：

• How can we unify such scattered islands into a nation?我们怎么才能把如此分散的岛屿统一成一个国家呢？
• It is difficult to imagine how the North and South could ever agree on a formula to unify the divided peninsula.很难想象南北双方在统一半岛的方案上究竟怎样才能达成一致。

24 credible   

adj.可信任的，可靠的

参考例句：

• The news report is hardly credible.这则新闻报道令人难以置信。
• Is there a credible alternative to the nuclear deterrent?是否有可以取代核威慑力量的可靠办法？

25 chaos   

n.混乱，无秩序

参考例句：

• After the failure of electricity supply the city was in chaos.停电后，城市一片混乱。
• The typhoon left chaos behind it.台风后一片混乱。

26 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

27 landslide   

n.(竞选中)压倒多数的选票；一面倒的胜利

参考例句：

• Our candidate is predicated to win by a landslide.我们的候选人被预言将以绝对优势取胜。
• An electoral landslide put the Labour Party into power in 1945.1945年工党以压倒多数的胜利当选执政。

28 inept   

adj.不恰当的，荒谬的，拙劣的

参考例句：

• Whan an inept remark to make on such a formal occasion.在如此正式的场合，怎么说这样不恰当的话。
• He's quite inept at tennis.他打网球太笨。

29 demise   

n.死亡；v.让渡，遗赠，转让

参考例句：

• He praised the union's aims but predicted its early demise.他赞扬协会的目标，但预期这一协会很快会消亡。
• The war brought about the industry's sudden demise.战争道致这个行业就这么突然垮了。

30 nominations   

n.提名，任命( nomination的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Nominations are invited for the post of party chairman. 为党主席职位征集候选人。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Much coverage surrounded his abortive bids for the 1960,1964, and 1968 Republican Presidential nominations. 许多消息报道都围绕着1960年、1964年和1968年他为争取提名为共和党总统候选人所做努力的失败。 来自辞典例句

31 mandate   

n.托管地；命令，指示

参考例句：

• The President had a clear mandate to end the war.总统得到明确的授权结束那场战争。
• The General Election gave him no such mandate.大选并未授予他这种权力。

32 exchequer   

n.财政部；国库

参考例句：

• In Britain the Chancellor of the Exchequer deals with taxes and government spending.英国的财政大臣负责税务和政府的开支。
• This resulted in a considerable loss to the exchequer.这使国库遭受了重大损失。

33 fiscally   

在国库方面，财政上，在国库岁入方面

参考例句：

• Nor will fiscally stretched governments pump more money into the political equivalent of a leper colony. 财政吃紧的政府也不愿将更多的钱投入这个避之唯恐不及的政治瘟疫区。
• We are more fiscally constrained, which forces us to work smarter and more efficiently. 与F-15相比我们资金上的限制更大了，美女类小游戏，这迫使我们更为精心和有效地工作。

34 prudent   

adj.谨慎的，有远见的，精打细算的

参考例句：

• A prudent traveller never disparages his own country.聪明的旅行者从不贬低自己的国家。
• You must school yourself to be modest and prudent.你要学会谦虚谨慎。

35 reassure   

v.使放心，使消除疑虑

参考例句：

• This seemed to reassure him and he continued more confidently.这似乎使他放心一点，于是他更有信心地继续说了下去。
• The airline tried to reassure the customers that the planes were safe.航空公司尽力让乘客相信飞机是安全的。