2022: A political year in words from Anti-Growth to Zombie (2024)

It has been (yet another) unprecedented year in UK politics, but despite the often serious consequences, UK politics has spat out some absurd, ridiculous and downright surreal moments.

We've created an A-Z glossary of some of the biggest of 2022.

Anti-growth coalition

A shadowy cabal working to frustrate the UK economy - at least according to former PM Liz Truss during her only party conference speech as leader. They included - but were not limited to - opposition MPs, "militant unions", vested interests "dressed up as think-tanks" and people who "take taxis from north London townhouses to the BBC studios".

Beergate

An investigation into whether Sir Keir Starmer had broken Covid lockdown laws was launched at the height of the Partygate scandal. By the time Durham Constabulary announced that Sir Keir had not breached any rules, for having a curry and beer in a Durham office during lockdown, the government had moved on to a new crisis - Boris Johnson had resigned just the day before.

Carlton Club

This exclusive Tory watering hole in London hit the headlines in July, when MP Chris Pincher "drank far too much" and allegedly sexually assaulted two men. He resigned the next day and Mr Johnson resigned a week later.

Desk

Hiding under a desk is probably preferable to answering questions in the House of Commons. But thanks to Penny Mordaunt we know Liz Truss definitely didn't do this. The Leader of the House told MPs "the prime minister is not under a desk" after Ms Truss did not turn up to respond to an urgent question. But Ms Mordaunt refused to reveal exactly where Ms Truss was.

Energy

The soaring cost of energy overshadowed everything in 2022, but there was little to laugh at for people facing soaring bills...

Farewells

Downing Street saw its fair share of farewell speeches this year, each with their own lectern. Both Boris Johnson and Liz Truss reached for a reference from ancient Rome. Mr Johnson, a famous lover of classics, referenced Cincinnatus, a patrician who turned to farming after leaving Rome only to return when his country needed him. Ms Truss opted for the statesman and philosopher Seneca, when she said: "It is not because things are difficult that we do not dare. It is because we do not dare that they are difficult."

Graham Brady

Little seen on camera but wielding huge power and influence behind the scenes, the chairman of the Conservative backbenchers' union - the 1922 committee - had a busy year. He organised two Tory leadership contests, after it became clear to two prime ministers that their time was in power was up.

Hasta (La Vista, baby)

In his final appearance at Prime Minister's Questions, Mr Johnson declared "mission largely accomplished, for now" before signing-off with "hasta la vista, baby" - a Spanish phrase meaning "see you later". He could only have dropped a heavier hint that he was not finished yet if he had used another catchphrase from the Terminator films: "I'll be back."

Inflation

The driver behind the ever-present cost-of-living crisis. Inflation hit its highest rate for 40 years. Rishi Sunak has made tackling the "enemy" of inflation his "number one priority" (see Rishinomics).

Jungle

Westminster is often called a political jungle. But not satisfied with the challenges of being a sitting MP, Matt Hanco*ck announced he was entering the I'm a Celebrity jungle in November. The former health secretary's decision became the second most complained about TV event of the year. Eventually he finished in third place. He says he won't be standing in the next general election, but will be seeking new challenges in the real world.

Kamikwasi

Few speeches in the House of Commons generate their own nicknames. But on 17 September, Kwasi Kwarteng delivered a mini-budget that led to market turmoil with the pound hitting a record low against the dollar. The statement was dubbed the Kamikwasi budget and lit the fuse on the series of events, that eventually led to Mr Kwarteng's departure.

Lettuce

A wilting 60p iceberg lettuce from Tesco in a blond wig became an unlikely star in the final days of Liz Truss's time as prime minister. The Daily Star newspaper began live-streaming a feed of the lettuce on 14 October to see if it would have a longer shelf-life than the embattled prime minister. The lettuce won.

Mass-walkouts

This December, Britain is facing a winter of strikes with more than 1m working days estimated to be lost to walkouts - the most since 1989, during Margaret Thatcher's final years in power. There is industrial action on the railways, in the health service and postal workers, to name a few.

Non-dom

This refers to the tax status of Rishi Sunak's wife. She recently gave up her tax status as a non-domiciled (non-dom) resident. It had meant Akshata Murty didn't have to pay tax on foreign income, mostly dividends collected from her family's Indian IT business empire.

Operation Save Big Dog

Rumours of a campaign to save Boris Johnson's premiership whipped around Westminster ahead of the much anticipated Sue Gray report.

Partygate

The first half of 2022 was dominated by Partygate, as we learned that during Covid lockdown, Downing Street saw a number of events. Boris Johnson always denied attending parties and breaching lockdown rules. But a series of investigations - one by the Met Police, one by civil servant Sue Gray - found that parties and alcohol-fuelled meet ups had repeatedly taken place. Mr Johnson and his wife Carrie, as well as Rishi Sunak, were among the 83 individuals issued with penalty notices over breaches of the rules.

Queue

Is there anything more British than a seven mile (11km) queue to pay tribute to the Queen? Thousands queued to see the former monarch lying in state in Westminster Hall ahead of the State Funeral.

Rishinomics

During the Tory leadership election, Rishi Sunak mocked promises of unfunded tax cuts at a time of soaring inflation as "fairytale" economics. In its place he promised to bring down taxes once he had "gripped" inflation. While Mr Sunak may have lost the leadership election to Liz Truss initially, Rishinomics, as it was termed, won out when the third prime minister this year eventually gained the keys to Downing Street.

Seventies (the)

The ghost of the decade haunted 2022. Soaring inflation, widespread strikes, political turmoil, threats of power cuts. It all felt strangely familiar to citizens of a certain age, but you did not have to wait long for an economist or pundit to explain that it wasn't like the Seventies at all. They didn't have the internet back then.

Tractors

Neil Parish told the BBC he was "looking for tractors" when he was first caught watching p*rn in the House of Commons chamber. The Tory MP then admitted he "deliberately" watched p*rn for a second time "sitting waiting to vote on the side of the chamber".

U-turn

Reversing a decision is a move in the toolbox of any government. But this year there were so many U-turns it felt like the government was doing donuts in the Downing Street car park; whether it was the unravelling of the Kamikwasi budget to Michael Gove dropping compulsory housebuilding targets.

Vote of confidence

Both Boris Johnson and Liz Truss technically survived votes of confidence this year, only to resign shortly afterwards. It was the de facto vote of confidence that descended to chaos in October that happened only hours before Ms Truss decided to step down as PM.

Wokerati

During a debate on the Public Order Bill, Home Secretary Suella Braverman blamed the "Guardian-reading, tofu-eating wokerati" for protests such as those by the group Just Stop Oil, which brought roads to a halt this year. It's a word that's now entered the political lexicon.

X-ministers

Ok, so it is ex-minister with an E. But over the last 12 years there has been a huge amount of turnover in government positions. BBC research has found 61% of all current Conservative MPs have been a minister or a whip at some point. Keeping party discipline may prove difficult when 51% of current backbenchers have held ministerial office, including three prime ministers of the backbenches.

Yacht, Royal

An update on last year's entry for Y. Plans for a national flagship yacht to promote the UK abroad have now been shelved. The £250m ship was commissioned by former PM Boris Johnson last year to host trade fairs and diplomatic events. But after Rishi Sunak took office, Downing Street announced it was scrapping the project to find departmental savings.

Zombie government

Labour labelled the final days of Boris Johnson a "zombie government". The opposition said 15 Whitehall consultations were left on the shelf and major issues, like rising energy prices, were left unaddressed while Mr Johnson went on holiday.