UK Workers Lack ‘Skill and Application’: Liz Truss in Leaked Audio

UK newspaper The Guardian gained access to an audio recording of Liz Truss' statements made five years ago, when she was chief secretary to the Treasury.

In an audio recording leaked to The Guardian, Liz Truss, now the Tory leadership frontrunner, said that those living outside the British capital were less likely to be hard workers and she suggested paying attention to China.

"If you look at productivity, it's very, very different in London from the rest of the country,” she said. "Essentially, it's partly a mindset and attitude thing, I think. It's working culture, basically. If you go to China it's quite different, I can assure you."

According to the politician, if the UK wants to be a rich and prosperous country, then it needs to solve the problem of its working culture.

“I once wrote a book about this which got mischaracterised – British workers produce less per hour than … and that’s a combination of kind of skill and application. If you look at productivity, it’s very, very different in London from the rest of the country. But basically … this has been a historical fact for decades. Essentially it’s partly a mindset and attitude thing, I think. It’s working culture, basically. If you go to China it’s quite different, I can assure you,” she said as quoted by the newspaper.

In turn, a source from her team said, commenting on the leaked audio recordings, that “half-a-decade-old comments lack context.”

According to the Office for National Statistics, London had the highest productivity level of any region in UK 2020, with output per hour more than 50% higher than the median.

The audio emerged just moments before she appeared at a hustings in Scotland alongside her rival, Rishi Sunak, and according to media reports, the audio could undermine her position in the upcoming elections.

Truss and former UK Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak are the two final candidates in the election race for the post of prime minister and leadership of the Conservative Party following Boris Johnson's resignation on July 7.

The last round will take place by mail starting August 4, with the winner determined by all party members, of whom there are about 200,000 to date. The results are expected to be announced on September 5, when the UK Parliament resumes its work after the summer break.