Image source, Press Association

The Conservative Party leadership contest began on 24 July and will end next month on 2 November.

Six candidates became three - James Cleverly, Robert Jenrick and Kemi Badenoch - which will become two at 15:30.

In yesterday's vote among Tory MPs, Cleverly leapt into the lead with 39 votes from his colleagues - after what was seen as a strong performance at last week's Tory party conference.

Jenrick came in second with 31 votes, while Badenoch came a close third with 30 votes.

The trio's colleagues will vote again this afternoon to whittle it down to a final two. And from tomorrow, it will be in the hands of Conservative Party members.

They will make their choice via secure online voting between 15 October and 31 October.

To be eligible to vote, party members must have been active for 90 days before the ballot closes and must have been members when nominations opened.

Chris Mason
Political editor

Image source, PA Media

The sprint finish to the start line is on.

It is not the sprint finish to the finish line, but the sprint finish to the starting blocks.

The next Conservative Party leader will be selected by Conservative Party members, but they will only get to choose from the final two candidates picked by Conservative MPs today.

Right now, there is: Intrigue, plotting, phone calls, quiet chats, guesswork and claims of underhand tactics.

“We are pushing towards quite the season finale,” one Conservative MP said to me.

I know what you might be thinking: pull yourself together, this is a vote to determine the final two candidates to become the Leader of the Opposition next month.

It is not exactly the race to the White House.

But it is, nonetheless, a crunch moment.

There are three candidates left - James Cleverly, Robert Jenrick and Kemi Badenoch - but just two golden tickets.

You can read more about the three still in the running here.

Nick Watt
Political editor, BBC Newsnight

During PMQs today Rishi Sunak asked about the debt rule, basically the limit on how much money the government can borrow.

Sunak reminded the PM that before the election his Chancellor Rachel Reeves said that changing the debt rule would be "fiddling the figures".

So, what's going on here?

Well, we're getting signs that Reeves is moving towards changing the debt rule to allow Labour to borrow more money for investment.

There are two ways of doing this - both require changing how debt is calculated.

The first is to exclude any losses the Treasury incurs that are linked to the Bank of England - that could allow the government to borrow about £10bn.

The second way is to take into account the value of public assets like roads, schools and hospitals - that could unlock around £57bn more.

Officially, no decision has been made.

But we're hearing from the government that a growing coalition of people are backing a change.

Plus, if we peek at the chancellor's reading list, we can see that Rachel Reeves is reading lots of analysis about debt rule.

That includes a recent article by the former cabinet secretary Lord Gus O’Donnell under the headline: "Ditch the last government’s absurd debt rule and invest to grow."

Harry Farley
Political correspondent

Image source, EPA

It's not just PMQs on the government's agenda today, as Deputy PM and Housing Secretary Angela Rayner is speaking in the House of Commons at the moment.

She is introducing the Renters’ Rights Bill, which bans Section 21 or "no fault" evictions.

It comes as charities warn that renters could still face demands for large upfront payments despite a Labour election promise to cap the amount landlords can ask for in advance.

Ahead of the afternoon's debate, housing department spokesperson said the government was confident the new law would protect tenants from such practices.

But legal advice received by Shelter and other housing groups disputes this.

You can read more about the row over the Renters’ Rights Bill here.

Luke Mintz
Journalist, World at One

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The former head of the civil service says he is concerned about a lack of "policy heavyweights" in Sir Keir Starmer's Downing Street.

Lord Gus O'Donnell, who was Cabinet Secretary from 2005 to 2011, was asked on BBC Radio 4's World at One if he was concerned about a "lack of grip" in No 10 following the departure of Sue Gray.

Lord O'Donnell replies: "I think there is definitely a problem there.

"This is a loss all round. It's a loss for Sue Gray, of her job, and it's a loss for the government in her abilities.

"I do think there is a need for No 10 to have a lot more heavyweights in there - policy heavyweights."

During former Labour PM Gordon Brown's era - he says - there was very senior members of the policy unit, such as David Miliband, Geoff Mulgan and Andrew Adonis.

"They're not there at the minute, and I think that is a shortfall," O'Donnell adds.

Iain Watson
Political correspondent

Now PMQs is over, Conservative MPs are going to vote to reduce the leadership contenders down from three to two.

The current frontrunner, the shadow home secretary James Cleverly, was prominent on the front bench in the House of Commons earlier.

Sitting two slots away from Rishi Sunak and not looking concerned - he indulged in pointing and grimacing at the Labour front bench opposite. The former contender Mel Stride, who has endorsed Cleverly, was there too.

But there was no sign of shadow housing secretary Kemi Badenoch on the front bench, while her supporter Chris Philip slipped away quickly.

From my vantage point in the press gallery I couldn't see the whole chamber, but (now backbencher) Robert Jenrick wasn't prominent either - presumably the pair were preparing for the final push to get on to the ballot of the wider membership.

The result will be announced at 15:30.

Is economic growth now stalling?published at 13:37 British Summer Time

13:37 BST

By Anthony Reuben

Conservative leader Rishi Sunak criticised the prime minister over economic growth, telling Keir Starmer it is "now stalling... under his watch".

The only official figures we have for growth, external in the economy measured by GDP is the monthly figure for July, when there was no growth.

There was also no growth in June, which was when the Conservatives were still in government.

But monthly figures are not a great measure of how the economy is doing.

We’ll find out what happened in the first three months of the Labour government on 15 November, when the Office for National Statistics publish their next batch of quarterly GDP figures.

In one of his questions Ed Davey asked Prime Minister Keir Starmer about "red tape" stemming from Brexit, which the Lib Dem leader said was affecting fisherman in the Falkland Islands.

Starmer said the topic of the Falklands is "personal" due to his uncle nearly being killed there in the 1982 war. You can watch the exchange below:

It was the first Prime Minister's Questions since September, and today's exchanges included questions over the upcoming Budget and a few quips over Sue Gray being removed as the PM's top aide.

Here's what we heard:

• Tory leader Rishi Sunak pressed the prime minister on whether the government is ruling out National Insurance contribution rises for both employee and employer. Keir Starmer didn't clarify but said he will stick to his manifesto pledge that there would be no increase in the tax
• Starmer announced the workers' rights bill will be published tomorrow - which he said will be "the biggest upgrade of workers’ rights in a generation"
• Sunak squeezed in two digs about Starmer's former Chief of Staff Sue Gray, asking when the PM "became a convert to fire and rehire" over upcoming changes to employment law
• The government will be investing £6.4m to develop new AI software to speed up diagnosis, Starmer also told MPs

What was promised about National Insurance?published at 12:52 British Summer Time

12:52 BST

By Anthony Reuben

Conservative leader Rishi Sunak repeatedly asked the prime minister whether Labour’s election pledge not to increase National Insurance (NI) includes employer NI.

Keir Starmer referred him to the party’s manifesto, which said: “Labour will not increase taxes on working people, which is why we will not increase National Insurance.”

That is not entirely clear because NI is not just paid by working people, it is also paid by employers, who generally pay a rate of 13.8%.

We will have to wait for the Budget in three weeks to find out.

Iain Watson
Political correspondent

Given the hard time Keir Starmer has had over staffing and freebies, he probably hasn’t endured as rough a ride as some anticipated at PMQs.

He even joked about not attending an event entitled "temptations".

The PM's strategy seems to have been to point out the many things Labour was getting on with - though many measures don’t make a narrative.

That's PMQs wrapped up for today, thanks for joining us.

We'll be bringing you some more analysis of how the weekly clash between Starmer and Sunak went, as well as a preview of what's being debated in Parliament later on.

Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner will be introducing the Renters' Rights Bill to the House of Commons for its second reading in front of MPs.

Suicide in Northern Ireland is a "unique and pressing legacy of the Troubles", says Ulster Unionist Party MP Robin Swann.

The South Antrim MP says more people have now lost their lives to suicide than were lost in the conflict itself and asks for collaborative support.

"I do know first hand the deep impact the Troubles have had on so many," says Starmer, adding "we must ensure those with mental health issues receive the support and the care that they need."

Although healthcare is devolved to Stormont, Starmer tells Swann that Health Secretary Wes Streeting is willing to work with them.

• If you've been affected by the issues in this post, help and support is available via the BBC Action Line

High streets are the issue Labour MP Luke Murphy wants to raise, saying constituents across the country want to see their local shops thriving.

The Basingstoke MP says his own town's high street has "huge potential but it's not what it could be".

Starmer says he has visited Murphy's local high street and says "here's the new political vibe - invest with Labour or decline with the Tories".

Shivani Raja from the Conservatives asks the prime minister about the proposal to charge VAT on private school fees, saying it "strips hardworking families of the choice for what is best for children".

The Leicester East MP presses Starmer on what he is doing to mitigate effects of the tax imposition - such as increasing class sizes and job losses for teachers - if he's not going to do an impact assessment.

The PM says he understands that parents "save hard" to send their children to private schools, but adds that every parent has aspiration for their children, whether they're sending them to a private or state school.

There's not enough teachers for state schools, which Labour won't tolerate, he says.

Image source, UK Parliament

Iain Watson
Political correspondent

Given Labour’s difficult few weeks, the Conservative benches are packed (in so far as 121 MPs can pack them) and were vocally supportive of their outgoing leader.

Rishi Sunak clearly thinks he is on to something in asking for clarity on whether employers’ National Insurance would rise in the budget.

Keir Starmer didn’t clarify if the "no rise in NI" pledge applied only to employees.

Sunak also wants to probe on an anticipated change in borrowing rules but the PM won’t be drawn to detail before the budget.

Jon Pearce from Labour is up next. He says that adult day centres are being cut in Derbyshire, and relays some of the personal experiences of constituents who have dementia.

Will the PM oppose the cuts being made in Derbyshire, the High Peak MP asks.

Starmer says he is shocked to hear about the impact of cuts in Derbyshire, and says that councils were at the front line of the "ruinous economic failure" of the last government.

He adds the Labour will provide councils with long-term financial support.

Iain Watson
Political correspondent

Keir Starmer has often talked of a "reset" with the EU but few details of his intentions have emerged.

Ed Davey expressed disappointment at the rejection of a youth mobility scheme but it doesn't sound to me that Keir Starmer was ruling this out completely (though he previously sounded unenthusiastic when asked on a visit to Germany).

He set out his "red lines" today - no return to the single market, customs union or freedom of movement.

But a reciprocal mobility scheme which is restricted to young people and time limited is arguably not "freedom of movement".

Now to the leader of the Lib Dems, Ed Davey, who asks the prime minister whether he'll reconsider entering a youth mobility scheme with the EU.

Starmer says the Labour party manifesto had "clear red lines" regarding the country's relationship with Europe, and says he will negotiate within those red lines.

Davey goes on to ask about red tape on businesses as a result of the Brexit deal, including on fisherman in the Falkland Islands. He asks Starmer whether he'll remember the overseas territories when renegotiating trade deals.

Starmer responds that this is a personal issue, as his uncle nearly lost his life defending the islands in the 1982 Falklands War. He says the government will do everything they can for all businesses to trade more freely.

Image source, UK Parliament

We’re now moving on to questions from Newcastle-under-Lyme's Labour MP Adam Jogee.

He asks Starmer to commit to research on cancer, thanking NHS staff for the support shown to his family following his father’s cancer diagnosis.

Starmer says he is “sorry to hear” about his father's health issues and adds that delays are another example of the "dreadful state" the last government left the health service in.

He notes some goals haven't been met since 2015, telling Jogee that the government will be investing £6.4m to help develop new AI software to speed up diagnosis.