Queen Elizabeth II, the UK's longest-serving monarch, died at Balmoral, aged 96 on the 7th of September, 2022. The day before her death, however, was the inauguration of Liz Truss, the newly elected Prime Minister of the UK from the Conservative Party. Charles III, the son of Queen Elizabeth II, is expected to accede to the throne following her death.

Following the passing of Queen Elizabeth II, the British government decided to label the day of the Queen’s funeral as a national holiday. This resulted in many British businesses shutting their stores and stopping operations on that day, in order to commemorate the death of the Queen. While many people were able to take time away from work to honor the late Queen, halting operations resulted in businesses losing a day of profits and moreover contributing to negatively impacting the British economy due to the predicted recession happening at the end of the year. Likewise, consumers were not happy that supermarkets and restaurants were closed, as many were not able to get their basic necessities.

The death of Queen Elizabeth II and the accession of King Charles III could additionally have a significant impact on retailers, manufacturers, and their delivery partners. Alarming the brands that they must be sensitive to public sentiment during the mourning period, it remains to be seen how it may impact consumer confidence during a period of uncertainty and financial confusion. There are some significant ways in which we can predict its impact on retail, manufacturing, and deliveries: it’s already clear that retailers are having to tread carefully during this sensitive period to avoid any missteps.

In addition, tens of millions of people in the UK could fall into fuel poverty this winter as energy prices soared due to the Ukraine war. As these predictions spread, more attention may be paid to the royal family's fiscal spending than usual. Compared to the 1953 coronation of Queen Elizabeth II, which was first broadcast on TV, the coronation of Charles III will be shorter, "cheaper, and, above all, more multicultural, reflecting the diversity of British society, says the Daily Telegraph, citing royal sources. In particular, ceremonies such as coronations are likely to be curtailed. In addition, the royal family must be conscious of the country's situation during these difficult times. The royal family's financial expenditure is a complex issue that lies at the heart of the anti-monarchy argument, which comes from 'royal grants' generated from annual tax payments.

All English currency, from a penny piece to a £50 note, featuring the late Queen’s image will stay in use for some time to come. Those old enough to recall pre-decimalization shopping will remember finding pennies bearing the image of numerous former monarchs. In time, new Charles III coins will be stamped. Businesses still largely wedded to cash may be in for a shock
At this point, the businesses still largely wedded to cash may be in for a shock as the move to produce new currency may hasten the demise of lower-value coins. How much rising steel and copper prices have affected the cost of producing new 1p coins is not sure. The cost and scale of producing new 1p pieces might mean they are phased out, rather than being replaced by new ones bearing King Charles III.

*The majority of this article has been written prior to Truss’s resignation on October 20th, 2022.
Liz Truss, now officially succeeding Boris Johnson as the new Prime Minister, brings a distinguishable political background to the United Kingdom as the third female prime minister. Starting off as a liberal democrat, Truss is a conservative anticipating the stimulation of the alleged “woke” culture. Formerly she has taken the position of; education minister, secretary of state for the environment, justice secretary, Chief Secretary of Treasury, Secretary of international trade, and finally the foreign secretary, in chronological order. Her political manifesto ‘Britannia Unchained’ co-authored by 4 other conservatives revolve around the aim to delegitimize certain regulations to “boost UK’s position in the world” and infamously reports British workers “among the worst idlers in the world”. “Britain could be heading for a 1980s style culture shock” she says.

Many have expressed Liz Truss’s foreign policy as one that will open a “transformative period” for the UK. This is greatly in part due to her open display of hostility towards China, particularly on the nations’ expansionist policies. She has declared China as a ‘threat’, and has received support from influential conservatives in the UK, as Truss herself is a member of the Conservative Party. In addition, she expressed her willingness to protect China’s adversaries such as Taiwan along with the concern of allowing open Chinese investments—with its increasing economic and military assertiveness—while signing a defense pact to support Australia in building nuclear technology to repel China's growing influence on the country. “Countries must play by the rules and that includes China,” she states.

Liz Truss is ready for radical changes to deal with serious problems Britain is currently facing. With her aim to focus her government and ministers on economic growth, her initiatives are composed of deregulation and tax cuts, being heavily reliant on free-market mechanisms. A major policy that Truss is initiating promises to ensure the annual household energy does not exceed 2,500 pounds amid the energy crisis triggered by the Russia-Ukraine War. As a result of the policy, the Britons’ burden of the soaring energy prices is expected to be alleviated and hence prevent the standard of living from declining. The plan will initially be funded by borrowing, which may call upon the Bank of England to further increase the interest rate.

Yet, in less than a month, Liz Truss’ amassment of government bonds and practically non-existent fiscal forethought has caused serious economic disturbances for the UK. Citizens have experienced drastic and never before seen increases in mortgage rates, some claiming to have seen a 4% rate increase to 10%, making housing unaffordable for many; the pound sterling has been close to parity with the US dollar, an unseen phenomenon for the last almost 40 years; and most recently, Liz Truss has fired her Financial Minister for attempting to undergo the fiscal reform that she had mandated then reversing it after the minister had seen that it was troubling the markets. Now, after just 45 days, severe population outcry, and severe humiliation sustained by Truss and the UK government, Liz Truss has officially resigned from her position as Prime Minister. However, the existence of many political debacles and contentions over the last 12 years leading to economic and political instability–such as Brexit, for example–and the fact that the common denominator seems to be Conservative Party control, begs the question: after 12 years of Conservative Party leadership, will the UK soon enter an era of Labor Party dominion?