The two prime minister candidates have each pledged new commitments if elected – Liz Truss saying she will take on the role of ‘Union minister’ and Rishi Sunak promising to make Britain ‘safer’ energetically”.

Ms Truss has vowed to stand up for the UK as she hits out at devolved administration politicians for playing ‘political games’ rather than voters.

The Foreign Secretary confirmed if she succeeds in becoming Prime Minister, she would also be Union Minister – a position created and held by Boris Johnson.

Her intervention came after she sparked controversy by denouncing the Prime Minister Nicola Sturgeon as an “attention seeker” suggesting that she would ignore his demands for a new independence referendum.

Meanwhile, Mr Sunak has pledged to introduce legislation to make the UK ‘energy independent’ by 2045 at the latest, as it has pledged to ensure there is no repeat of the impending winter crisis.

The former Chancellor said that if he takes office at Number 10 on September 5, he will put in place immediate support for households – especially the most vulnerable – facing rising energy bills, as well as an increase in gas production in the North Sea.

It would do so, he said, through deregulation that would allow gas production to increase during the winter.

Regulations governing offshore wind, rooftop solar and nuclear would be revised to increase supply, while fracking for shale gas would be allowed where there is local consent, he said. he adds.

“We are not four separate nations”

In a statement, Ms Truss – who remains the favorite to succeed Mr Johnson – insisted she would rule for all of Britain’s ‘family’ if she were given the keys to No 10.

“Having grown up in Paisley before going to comprehensive school in Leeds, I consider myself a Union kid. When I say I’m going to deliver for our country, I mean everything,” she said .

“For too long people in parts of our UK have been let down by their devolved administrations playing political games instead of focusing on their priorities. If I am elected Prime Minister, I will rise to it all our country.

“We are not four separate nations in a deal of convenience, as some would have us believe. We are one big country that shares history and institutions, but also family and friends, memories and values.”

Read more:
What have Truss and Sunak promised for the country so far?

Ahead of a visit next week to Scotland, she accused the SNP of being preoccupied with the issue of independence when she said they should be focusing on preventing a recession.

However, the SNP hit back, saying she had “complete contempt for Scotland”.

Mr. Sunk Concentrated its efforts on the energy crisisalso pledging the creation of a new task force on energy security and

He said he would take action to drastically reduce energy waste, with low-cost measures to insulate millions of homes.

In the longer term, he promised to reform the energy market – which was no longer “fit for purpose” – to reduce bills, with the establishment of a new department dedicated to energy to drive change.

Labor, meanwhile, was unimpressed.

Ed Miliband, Secretary of Shadow Climate Change and Net Zero, said he didn’t believe ‘the man who dragged his feet for months on the windfall tax, then introduced a massive loophole for oil and gas companies’ could ‘tackle the bill crisis facing Britons’.

He added: “The truth is that Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss just don’t understand the scale of the emergency the families are facing.”