Theresa May became the second female Prime Minister of England Wednesday and promised to continue predecessor David Cameron's "true legacy" of social justice.
Speaking at her first public appearance as UK’s head of state, the Conservative Party leader directed most of her talk to the indigent, colored and white working-class residents as well as women, youth and those with mental health issues, assuring them that "The government I lead will be driven not by the interests of a privileged few, but by yours."
David Cameron, who resigned after the Brexit referendum results, took leave of his office at 10 Downing Street, wishing May good speed as she takes on the country’s exit from the European Union, a process that would prove daunting to anyone.
May seems to be up for the job and took the first steps in that process by immediately naming six Cabinet members, two of which were her chief rivals in her bid to head the Conservative Party--former London mayor Boris Johnson and Liam Fox, as foreign secretary and secretary of state for international trade respectively. Johnson was one of the leaders of the campaign to leave the EU. May also named ex-Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond the chancellor of the Exchequer, a position that oversees the British Treasury.
BOE Likely To Cut Interest Rate
The Bank of England’s policy announcement is scheduled for later today (11:00 GMT) and markets are bracing for what is expected to be an interest rate cut of 25 basis points, the first rate cut for the UK in seven years.
On June 30th, just one week after the Brexit vote, Bank of England Governor Mark Carney hinted at policy changes to come in a speech in London, saying, "The economic outlook has deteriorated and some monetary policy easing will likely be required over the summer." Carney pointed to the heightened risk of slipping into a new recession in the wake of the Brexit vote as the key factor to the rate cut.