Calamity Liz tries to rewrite history for her comeback

IN THE history of English football’s Premier League, Ali Dia is widely regarded as the worst ever player. Recommended to Southampton by a con artist, the striker from Senegal made one inept appearance as a substitute in 1996.

So woeful was his performance that he had to be brought off before the final whistle. The Southampton star Matt Le Tissier later recalled: “He ran around the pitch like Bambi on ice. It was very, very embarrassing to watch.”

Liz Truss is the Ali Dia of politics. Promoted by her campaign team with empty claims about her talent for leadership, she soon proved so hopeless as Prime Minister that she had to be removed after just 44 days. Hers is easily the shortest premiership in British history – and one of the most calamitous.

Even in that brief period, the damage she inflicted was remarkable as the markets slid into turmoil, interest rates soared and pension funds teetered on the brink of collapse.

She had promised a shake-up. She brought a meltdown.Yet instead of feeling humiliated by this legacy, Truss remains defiant. With the same ironclad self confidence that has long infused her career, she has launched a PR blitz to justify her economic vision and re-establish herself as a leading figure in public life.