The road ahead is not going to be smooth for Theresa May. The Home Secretary, who succeeded David Cameron as leader of the Conservative Party Monday, and is set to take over as Prime Minister from him, faces a set of challenges that she has to tackle head on immediately after taking the reins at Downing Street.
May will be the second woman Prime Minister of United Kingdom (UK) after Margaret Thatcher. Like Thatcher, who was also from the Conservative Party, she will have to have iron will to see herself through. However, she will have to deal with a soft hand to ensure support from multiple quarters.
One of the biggest challenges that May, who had backed Britain to remain in the European Union (EU), will face is to reunite the Conservative Party. The Brexit referendum has left the party sharply divided with many members backing the Leave camp. Now, with Britain having decided to leave the EU, May’s task becomes all the more challenging. She has taken the right step by making her position clear.
“I couldn’t be clearer. Brexit means Brexit and we are going to make a success of it. There will be no attempts to remain inside the EU, no attempts to rejoin it by the back door and no second referendum,” she has said. What could help May in this venture is that she knows many senior members of the Cabinet well, having served as the longest standing Home Secretary in a decade.
Leaving EU would also throw up the problem of the millions of EU nationals in Britain. It would be difficult to grant them permanent status. It would be equally difficult to make them leave. One option would be to have a quid pro quo arrangement with other EU countries where people of the UK are guaranteed a place within those borders. However, this will be difficult to negotiate, given Britain’s stand on curbing migration.
Coupled with this is the task of uniting the fractured populace of the country and steering the nation to safe waters. There will be many barriers on this path. One formidable obstacle will be Scotland, where most of the people had voted to remain in the European Union. First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has already reiterated that Scotland wanted to stay in Europe. Sturgeon has said she intends to explore all measures to ensure Scotland remains in Europe.
May will also have to set out her vision for the country and outline what she sees as Britain’s relationship with the EU.
She will have to clarify Britain’s position and the exit process at a meeting with other EU leaders and also negotiate a good deal for the UK as an entity outside the EU. The deal must give UK the chance to control migration and yet ensure British access to the common market. In that, she is likely to have an uphill task, especially as German Chancellor Angela Merkel has stated that the negotiations are not going to be easy as Britain cannot cherry pick which aspects of its EU membership it wants to keep. Merkel has also rejected suggestions that Britain could retain full EU market access while at the same time imposing curbs on immigration.
The next Prime Minister will also have to boost the flagging economy and ensure that all sections get their due, instead of just the privileged class. Towards this end, May has pledged that the “Conservative Party will put itself completely, absolutely and unequivocally at the service of the working people” to ensure that it is a country for everyone. However, this will be easier said than done.
One of the changes she aims to bring about is to put worker representatives on all main company boards and also tighten control on the pay of top executives. In this, May will face a lot of opposition from the top echelons of British society.
May probably faces a more daunting task at this juncture than any Prime Minister of Britain has had to face in peacetime. Considering this situation, Theresa May or may not achieve success and a whole lot of Britain’s future depends on her.
