Britain's new prime minister, Rishi Sunak, has vowed to fix 'mistakes' of Liz Truss' leadership by preparing the country for the difficult decisions ahead, PA Media reports.

He acknowledged that Britain faces a deep economic crisis in his first speech since King Charles III asked him to form a government.

He said his predecessor, whose 49 days in office made her the prime minister with the shortest tenure in history, rightly wanted to accelerate economic growth, calling it a noble goal.

“But some mistakes were made. Not born of ill will or bad intentions – quite the opposite in fact. But mistakes nonetheless,” he added.

“I’ve been elected as leader of my party and your Prime Minister in part to fix them – and that work begins immediately.”

Sunak, 42, became Britain's first Hindu prime minister, the first from Asia and the country's youngest head of government in more than 200 years.