Image source, Reuters

Former chancellor Rishi Sunak was tight-lipped this morning on whether he plans to enter the race to succeed his former leadership rival.

Leaving his house in London earlier, Sunak did not answer questions from reporters and said nothing as he walked from his front door to his car.

Liz Truss beat Sunak six weeks ago to become prime minister - winning a ballot of Conservative Party members by 81,000 votes to Sunak's 60,000.

Image source, Reuters

Penny Mordaunt is not currently working on a leadership bid but is "taking soundings" from colleagues and talking to as many people as she can about standing, the PA news agency is reporting.

It quotes a source as saying: "It's a testament to Penny's campaign over the summer how many colleagues have already come out asking her to stand. At the moment there isn't a campaign but Penny has always been the candidate that can unite the party, deliver and beat Labour."

Mordaunt came third in the leadership contest to replace Johnson and is widely seen as one of the front-runners in this new race. She is currently leader of the House of Commons, after she was appointed into the role by Liz Truss.

Image source, PA Media

Labour is reiterating its call for a general election, with shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves saying "the longer the Conservatives are in power, the less fit they are to govern".

"The truth is just passing around the prime minister job, the chancellor job, like it's some sort of game of 'pass the parcel' is not going to provide the country with the leadership and the stability that we desperately need," she tells BBC Radio 4.

She says the Tories have caused "huge amounts of damage", with volatility in the markets adding to borrowing costs for the country and for homeowners.

Many Tory MPs are also "desperately worried" about the state of the country and the "undermining of our position" on the world stage as the UK is increasingly looking like "a laughing stock".

Turmoil in the markets defined much of Liz Truss's short time in office - so where do things stand now?

The markets weren't surprised by Truss's resignation, economist Mohamed El-Erian says, which meant there was wasn't a huge reaction to the news.

"The markets right now are in a wait-and-see [mode]: immediate financial stability has been restored thanks to the actions taken by the new chancellor," the adviser to Allianz says.

But he says there are two longer-term issues: can the UK pivot to higher growth and can it do so in a financially responsible way?

The markets, he says, will be looking at three things:

1. details on the growth plan, including verdicts by independent parties such as the Office for Budget Responsibility
2. more details on what will happen to the energy price subsidy after six months
3. whether there will be more fiscal actions from the new government

El-Erian says the markets have "made it very clear you cannot go down the path of unfunded tax cuts".

Is a comeback for Johnson on the cards?published at 08:40 British Summer Time 21 October 2022

08:40 BST 21 October 2022

Chris Mason
Political editor

It's back to the future into a leadership race again.

All of the initial focus is around Boris Johnson - the big question is can he secure the necessary number of nominations from MPs?

There is no doubt there are MPs who absolutely do not want to see him coming back and would consider their own positions were that to happen.

What is equally true is there were plenty of MPs who would like to see him back because they see him as a winner.

They have been staring - what they think is - near certain loss in the face for the last few weeks and they see the potential at least of a guy who was a winner last time.

Many of them say it's because of Boris Johnson they are House of Commons in the first place.

I expect today we will hear one way or another from Ben Wallace, the defence secretary, we'll hear from Penny Mordaunt, who was one of the leading candidates last time.

Perhaps not quite so soon, publicly at least, from Rishi Sunak but we're hearing he's going to be a serious contender - it would be a huge surprise if he wasn't.

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt has said the government will do "whatever is necessary to drive down debt in the medium term," in response to the latest data on government borrowing, which is up £2.2bn from a year earlier.

Hunt, who replaced Kwasi Kwarteng after the latter was sacked following the turmoil sparked by the mini-budget, said: "To stabilise markets, I've been clear that protecting our public finances means difficult decisions lie ahead.

"We will do whatever is necessary to drive down debt in the medium term and to ensure that taxpayers' money is well spent, putting the public finances on a sustainable path as we grow the economy."

Image source, Getty Images

A Conservative MP who is backing Rishi Sunak to lead the party says the country needs a prime minister who is "a serious personality in serious times".

Crispin Blunt also said former Prime Minister Boris Johnson is not the right person to restore the reputation of the party amid speculation he will launch a leadership bid.

"I don't think we want to go back there with all that baggage," Blunt told BBC Breakfast.

"We have to get past the great psychodrama of Boris Johnson and that is going to be a question for us in the next week, but I don't think we want to go back to where we were six weeks ago, we need to look forward."

He added: "Boris undoubtedly is a fantastic communicator...Rishi is of the same order, but a much more serious personality and I think we're in much more serious times now and we've got to get a serious message across to the country and to the Conservative Party on our need to deliver a serious administration."

A Conservative MP and member of the 1922 Committee which oversees Tory leadership contests has said he is "quite confident" former Prime Minister Boris Johnson can win if he stands.

Speaking on Radio 4's Today programme, Karl McCartney made the case for Johnson's return, saying he dealt with a range of difficult issues as prime minister in a "credible" way and "made the right call on a number of things" from the Ukraine war to the Covid pandemic.

He also claims Labour and sections of the media carried out a "credible hatchet job" on Johnson which ultimately led to his resignation, rather than his stepping down being a reflection of discontent among his own MPs and the party.

McCartney adds that he does not yet know if Johnson is standing in the leadership contest, but says he is the Conservative party's "best electoral asset" and has his backing.

Conservative MPs have a "patriotic duty" to call for an early general election, the leader of the Liberal Democrats has said.

Ed Davey told BBC Breakfast the country did not need another Conservative prime minister "lurching from crisis to crisis".

He urged Conservatives to push for a general election "so the British people can have their say".

Davey also expressed doubt about whether any of the candidates could unite the Conservatives, saying "they are so divided".

"They may try and stitch something up but I don't think it will last", Davey added.

Government borrowing - the difference between spending and tax income - was £20bn last month, up £2.2bn from a year earlier, the Office for National Statistics said.

The figure is the second highest for September borrowing since monthly records began in 1993.

Image source, Reuters

A Conservative MP and former cabinet minister has urged his colleagues to "put the country first" when they vote in the leadership contest to replace Liz Truss as party leader and prime minister.

David Lidington, a former justice secretary under Theresa May, said he wanted MPs to pick someone who was capable of leading a "competent, effective government" and who can "start repairing some of the damage that we've seen in recent weeks".

Lidington also wants to see just one candidate put forward for leader by Monday, rather than all the contenders who exceed the backing of 100 Tory MPs.

"We have to try to pull together and we need to see the next cabinet - including the most talented men and women in the party, and from the left, the centre and the right of the Conservative Party - working as an effective team. The country's interests are what matters here," he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme.

The SNP's Westminster leader has reiterated his party's calls for an early general election, saying the idea Conservatives can "foist" another leader on the UK will be met with "revulsion" by the country.

"We can't keep going like this," Ian Blackford tells the Today programme.

"This feels like a government and a party, frankly, that's out of time.

"And I think if they recognise that they have a responsibility to act in all our national interests, for all the nations of the United Kingdom, then now is the time for them to realise that it's in everybody's interests that an election's called, and that we get the chance to move on."

When a successor to Liz Truss is appointed, it will be the second time since the 2019 general election that Conservative MPs and members have decided who is prime minister rather than the wider electorate.

Image source, PA Media

The race is now on to succeed Liz Truss as leader of the Conservative Party and prime minister, with early indications that Former Prime Minister Boris Johnson, Rishi Sunak and Penny Mordaunt will be the frontrunners.

Candidates will need to secure a minimum of 100 nominations by Monday lunchtime to proceed to the ballot - much higher than the 20-MP threshold needed in the contest to replace Johnson.

Sunak, Johnson and Mordaunt have already each achieved a strong early backing from MPs.

Johnson, currently on holiday in the Caribbean, has not officially declared his intention to run, but his staunch supporter Nadine Dorries said she spoke to him following Truss's resignation and hinted strongly that he was preparing to run.

Image source, EPA

Former chancellor Sunak, who defeated Truss among MPs in the last contest but lost out among party members, is the bookmakers' favourite to be in No 10 by next Friday. Reports citing people involved in his previous campaign say he will stand again.

Mordaunt, viewed as a potential leadership contender after coming third among MPs in the last contest, has also been tipped to run, saying yesterday she would "keep calm and carry on".

Image source, Reuters

Meanwhile, some MPs would like Defence Secretary Ben Wallace to stand, although he has given no indication he intends to do so.

Other names in the frame include Suella Braverman, who was forced to quit as home secretary by Truss, and International Trade Secretary Kemi Badenoch - both of whom stood in the last contest - although they may struggle to get the nominations.

Image source, Getty Images

The UK's reputation has been "trashed in a matter of weeks", the chief executive of a brewery has told the BBC.

Speaking on the Today programme, Jonathan Neame of Shepherd Neame described events of the last four weeks - which included a mini-budget that sparked market turmoil and ultimately Liz Truss's resignation as prime minister - as a "complete shambles".

He says new Chancellor Jeremy Hunt - who replaced the sacked Kwasi Kwarteng - has "almost righted the ship".

"What we need now is long-term competent thinking", says Neame.

"The UK is largely uninvestable for foreign banks and investors, so we need to make sure the financial service sector is extremely strong."

Neame also called on the government to solve barriers to trade like the post-Brexit Northern Ireland Protocol arrangement and a "positive immigration policy" to help deal with a "chronic" skills shortage.

"The only way businesses, or the country, will get back on its feet is a period of sustained stable, and serious competent government", he says.

Image source, PA Media

The prospect of Boris Johnson making it into the final stage of the Tory Party leadership race should be taken "very" seriously, according to the founder of the ConservativeHome website.

Tim Montgomerie says he's hearing that not only is the former prime minister likely to pass the 100 MPs threshold, but he could garner the backing of "close to 140".

Candidates vying to succeed Liz Truss need the support of at least 100 Tory MPs by 14:00 BST on Monday, with party members voting on the candidates that meet that threshold in an online vote by next Friday.

"Boris Johnson is very popular amongst grassroots members and Rishi Sunak, the other leading contender for the crown, is much less popular," Montgomerie told BBC Radio 4's Today programme.

"So I wouldn't want to make any cast iron prediction in this crazy world of politics at the moment but I think Boris Johnson returning is a very real possibility."

Montgomerie added that there are many Tories who "hate the idea of Johnson becoming leader" again, with talk of MPs potentially resigning the whip if he succeeds.

But there are people who do not want to see Sunak as leader, he said, stating that while the former chancellor "definitely wants the leadership", he was "quite affected" by the backlash from some quarters during his last bid.

Yesterday began with politicians and journalists alike asking whether there was still a chance that Liz Truss could salvage her premiership.

Hours later came 1922 Committee chairman Sir Graham Brady's visit to Downing Street. Then a podium was wheeled out in front of No 10 and Truss emerged to address the waiting media.

Truss confirmed she was standing down after just 45 days in office.

Her resignation followed a bruising four weeks in which the government's mini-budget prompted market turmoil, Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng was sacked and replaced by Jeremy Hunt and Home Secretary Suella Braverman resigned.

That was all capped off by chaotic scenes in Parliament on Wednesday night, when No 10 repeatedly U-turned on whether a vote on fracking was also a motion of confidence in the government.

Truss's resignation means she is the shortest-serving prime minister in UK history.

Who can inject stability back into the party?published at 06:32 British Summer Time 21 October 2022

06:32 BST 21 October 2022

Helen Catt
Political correspondent

The crucial thing the Conservative Party is looking for is a leader who can inject stability back into government.

But who do they think is capable of doing this?

One name resurfacing is former Prime Minister Boris Johnson - who just a few months ago was ousted from the role himself.

There are supporters of his in Parliament who are calling for his return.

Their argument is that he was leading the Conservatives when they won the general election in 2019, and so they argue he has a mandate to lead.

The BBC understands figures including Business Secretary Jacob Rees-Mogg are trying to raise support for his return.

But that's not going to go down well with a lot of other Conservative MPs. At least one has already said they would quit the party if he came back.

It would also be very difficult to explain to the public why the party is putting someone back in No 10 after it said his qualities weren't there to be prime minister just a few months ago.

Image source, UK Parliament

We reported earlier on the whispers that Boris Johnson could stand to replace Liz Truss and become the UK PM once again.

The Times first reported the potential comeback, external, with the Daily Telegraph following soon after, external. Johnson is yet to confirm or deny the rumours.

In the meantime, though, let's take a look at some of things that led to him being ousted from office in July.

Partygate

• The one that, arguably, came to define Johnson's premiership was Partygate, which saw the PM, various MPs and aides accused of holding gatherings in official buildings during the various Covid lockdowns
• Many were cleared - including Johnson on some of the dates originally suggested - but an investigation by the Met Police found that the then-PM and Chancellor Rishi Sunak did break the law on one of those occasions. They were both fined, but refused to resign

Allegations of misleading MPs

• Following on from that, Johnson was accused of misleading MPs in the House of Commons about parties held in Downing Street during lockdown. He is still under investigation by a Commons committee over those claims
• If found guilty, he could face suspension from the Commons or even lose his seat

Chris Pincher

• Shortly before announcing his resignation, Johnson was forced to apologise after it emerged he'd appointed Chris Pincher MP to a government role after being told about a misconduct complaint against him
• Many saw this error of judgement as the final nail in Johnson's political coffin

As the battle begins for the next leader of the Conservative Party, a leading think tank has warned that a failure to take young people seriously could harm future democracy.

A poll for the BBC suggests that just 17% of 16 to 24-year-olds feel positive about UK politics.

BBC Newsbeat has been speaking to young people ahead of the leadership race.

For 20-year-old Holly from Bristol, politicians need to "follow through on promises" for young people like her to have trust in them.

And Will, also 20, says he feels policies around the economy over a number of years have not "necessarily been to serve young people".

"It just seems like we're going backwards rather than forwards," he says.

"Politicians have to think about "other people who actually need help", says 20-year-olds Nicole and Courtney from Greater Manchester.

Read more here.

Image source, Getty Images

It's lunchtime in Asia and morning in Europe. If you're just joining us, here's a quick recap of all the key events you need to know about.

• Liz Truss resigned as PM on Thursday after 45 days in office, making her the shortest-serving PM in UK history

• Sir Graham Brady, chairman of the influential 1922 committee, announced that nominations for those wishing to run to replace Truss had opened and would close on Monday
• He said that candidates would need to have the backing of at least 100 Tory MPs by that point. If there's more than one candidate on Monday, the contest will be opened up to the party's membership in an online vote
• The new Tory leader, and so PM, will be in office by next Friday, according to Brady
• Among the names rumoured to be in the running to replace Truss are, as you'd expect, former contenders Rishi Sunak and Penny Mordaunt - with one surprise in the mix: Boris Johnson. But no one has yet announced their bid for Number 10
• Appearing on BBC One's Question Time this evening, Johnson's sister Rachel refused to confirm whether her brother intended to run
• Meanwhile, senior politicians from across the political spectrum - including Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer and Scottish FM Nicola Sturgeon - are calling for an "immediate" general election