Britain's prime minister in waiting Liz Truss models herself on Margaret Thatcher, judging by her photo ops echoing famous images of the country's first female premier. If Truss becomes leader of the ruling party on Monday as is widely expected, she'll need all the grit and guile of the Iron Lady as she walks into a scene straight out of the 1980s: a looming recession, industrial unrest and urban decay.
In a sign of the times, an area straddling the River Mersey near Liverpool that was once an industrial heartland now has a less illustrious claim to fame: families there are seeking protection from creditors at the fastest rate in the country.
South of the river in Runcorn, where business parks and logistics centers stand alongside boarded up shops and churches asking for donations for desperate families, ex-soldier Eddie Thompson is taken aback by what has become of his hometown.