Mason Boycott-Owen from The Telegraph asks: "In terms of a no confidence vote next week, how sure are you that any Conservatives will actually support that?

"Has there been any private conversations between yourself of your team with Tory MPs who said if you do bring that no confidence vote we will support it because we want the PM to go?"

Starmer says there is a "duty" for the Conservative Party to do the right thing when it comes to a confidence vote.

The idea that they will all troop to say they do have faith in Boris Johnson again beggars belief, he says.

Image source, PA Media

Andy Bell from Channel 5 News asks: "Aren't you playing politics with this call for a vote of no confidence, because if this was a situation that was reversed, if it was a Labour PM who had stepped down as leader, exactly the same thing would be playing through. This is just your way of trying to exploit the situation?"

Starmer rejects that suggestion.

"There's a world of difference between this situation and previous situations where a leader has stepped down," he says.

Under the previous Tory prime minister Theresa May there was a policy dispute, whereas Boris Johnson was brought down on the issue of trust and integrity, he says.

In response to ITV News's question, Starmer says there was "no end" of politicians telling the police what to do when he was in his previous job as director of public prosecutions.

"I'm not going to do that," he says.

"They make their decisions, and I respect whatever decisions they've come to."

Anushka Asthana from ITV News asks next: "You see this as a good result, but Conservative MPs are telling me they see this as a good result too, they think you're more beatable than some of your Labour colleagues, what do you say to that?"

She also asks: "Durham Police said there is no case to answer, do you think they bowed to political pressure in launching this investigation?"

In response to Sky News's question, Starmer says a general election is the answer to the current instability.

We've been stuck in a cost-of-living crisis with a government that can't deliver, he says.

"Britain deserves that fresh start, that can only come with a change of government."

Up next is Sky News' Sam Coates, who asks Starmer: "You're pushing for a vote of no confidence next week, if you win there'll be an election.

Do you think the answer to the chaos and instability now is a general election?"

In response to the BBC's Chris Mason, Starmer says he doesn't think his job has got harder with the resignation with Boris Johnson.

He says "not in the slightest", adding that the Tory Party is tearing itself apart, while the Labour Party is united and wants to "press on with a plan for Britain".

Moving to questions now, the BBC's Chris Mason asks the Labour leader: "Whilst you must be relieved, isn't this a week that your job has actually got much harder after the resignation of Boris Johnson, the man you defined yourself against?"

Continuing his pitch to be prime minister, Starmer says: "I'm certainly not perfect, and I will make mistakes along the way, but what you will always get from me is someone who believes honesty and integrity matter."

Keir Starmer says that under Conservative leadership things are broken everywhere people look.

In the Tories, voters see a group of people "totally detached from reality" whose words mean nothing and put their own interests first, he says.

Starmer says the feeling that politics has failed "has been bubbling away for years".

He says people have completely lost faith that politics can be a force for good.

And he says the reason he promised to step down if he was fined was to change people's minds about politics.

I always said that no rules were broken when I was in Durham, Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer begins.

"People said to me I was taking a risk by saying I would step down if I was fined. But it was never about that," he says.

"For me, it was a matter of principle."

Labour leader Keir Starmer has just started speaking to reporters after he and his deputy Angela Rayner were cleared by Durham Police of breaking lockdown rules.

Watch along by pressing play at the top of the page. And of course we'll bring you the latest here too.

Image source, Getty Images

We're expecting to hear from Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer shortly.

We found out a little earlier that he and his deputy Angela Rayner have been cleared by Durham Police of breaking lockdown rules.

But we're also expecting to hear more about Boris Johnson and that confidence vote Labour says it will bring if the PM doesn't step down from his role immediately.

Stick with us as we bring you the latest.

City of Durham MP Mary Foy was also at the gathering and her conduct was investigated by police.

In a statement on Twitter, she says she's "delighted" neither she nor her team have a case to answer.

Foy adds: "It's unfortunate that the desire of some Conservative politicians to score political points has led to so much of Durham Police's time being focused on a matter that was already investigated, especially when their resources are already under significant pressure."

What the 'Beergate' decision means for our politicspublished at 13:34 British Summer Time 8 July 2022

13:34 BST 8 July 2022

Chris Mason
Political editor

This decision matters because it tells you who will lead the Labour party into the next general election.

Until today, that was far from certain - a colossal pause button pressed on Keir Starmer’s future; his political fate in the hands of detectives in County Durham.

He’d decided in May that a fine would equal resignation for him; consistent with his demand that it should have meant the same for Boris Johnson.

He can and will now return to his argument that not all politicians are the same, that integrity matters.

He’ll argue that contrast is now more stark than ever in comparison with Mr Johnson.

But while he is mighty relieved today, this is also the week that his biggest political challenge, becoming prime minister, arguably became a bit harder.

For having defined himself in opposition to Boris Johnson, he now faces the moving target of a range of possible opponents.

They’ll have - for a while at least - the shine of novelty, albeit without their own mandate.

But they may not present him with quite the same scope for critique as he’s had in recent months with the prime minister.

Sharing her reaction to to this afternoon's statement from Durham Police over 'Beergate', Labour deputy leader Angela Rayner has welcomed that there was "no case to answer".

She tweeted, external: "We’ve always been clear that no rules were broken in Durham.

"The police have completed their investigation and agreed, saying that there is no case to answer. Integrity matters in politics.

"The contrast with the behaviour of this disgraced Prime Minister couldn’t be clearer."

Sigh of relief for Labour as focus turns to confidence votepublished at 13:12 British Summer Time 8 July 2022

13:12 BST 8 July 2022

Nick Eardley
Political correspondent

This was a huge cloud that was hanging over the Labour party and its leadership in the last few weeks.

Sir Keir Starmer and Angela Rayner were at this event and they both said that if they were fined, they would both resign.

They always insisted that no rules were broken and Durham Police seem to have come up with the exact same conclusion.

Politically, this is a huge relief for Starmer, he has built his career on being Mr Rules, he's always tried to contrast himself with Boris Johnson.

Part of Starmer's calculation was he could put more pressure on the prime minister by promising to resign if fined.

Labour are intending to put forward a motion of no confidence in the government early next week because they think that the Conservative Party is going to keep Johnson in office until after the summer.

I think that a confidence vote will fail because I don't think many Tory MPs will back it, there may be some.

But it does just add to this real sense of crisis in British politics over the last few weeks.

We're hearing now from Labour leader Keir Starmer, who says the investigation by Durham Police was "always a matter of principle".

In a tweet,, external he says: "I’ve always said no rules were broken when I was in Durham.

"The police have completed their investigation and agreed: there is no case to answer. For me, this was always a matter of principle. Honesty and integrity matter. You will always get that from me."

Image source, PA Media

Details of lockdown-breaking parties in Whitehall emerged late last year, and over the following months the government was dogged by a steady stream of further allegations.

In April, Boris Johnson and his wife Carrie, as well as then-Chancellor Rishi Sunak, all received fines for an event they attended in June 2020.

Johnson and Sunak both rejected calls to resign.

Fines were eventually given to 83 individuals, with 28 people receiving between two and five fines.

In May, Durham police said they were investigating Labour's leader and deputy leader over a visit during with he drank beer in an MP's office.

Both pledged to resign if they were fined, clearly attempting to draw a contrast with the prime minister and chancellor.