Good Coffee, Chilled Sauvignon, and Mayo Ban: Liz Truss’s Rider Revealed

A new biography of former Prime Minister Liz Truss has revealed what one journalist has called “clearly her soundest policy” — food and beverage quirks which align her not with the rest of the wrong’uns in the Conservative party, but with sane individuals up and down the United Kingdom.

The book Out of the Blue: the Inside Story of the Unexpected Rise and Rapid Fall of Liz Truss by Harry Cole and James Heale, serialised in the Times on Saturday, details Truss’s coffee preferences, wine demands on overnight trips, lunch choices, and outright rejection of mayonnaise.

Firstly, she likes her coffee. A former aide, Kirsty Buchanan, is quoted saying Truss would consume “about 42,000 espressos a day.” But not any old coffee. According to the book, Truss would not drink “big-brand coffee,” instead preferring “independent producers” except, — once a Tory, always a Tory etc. — “Pret if in the U.K.”

Truss would also stipulate that double espressos were served to her in a flat white-sized (usually 6oz) takeaway cup, not the small ones specifically designed for the short beverage.

Next up — sandwiches: Strictly no pre-made nor “plastic-packed” sandwiches and nothing to be served that has not been freshly prepared. But for lunch, specifically: just bagels or sushi. And never ever any mayonnaise, on anything. Ever.

Finally, in the refrigerator of any overnight accommodation? Obviously, a chilled bottle of sauvignon blanc must be provided.

Where this leaves Truss’s wine fridge, larder, or Deliveroo favourites now she’s out of post and keeping the back benches warm is anyone’s guess.