Rishi Sunak is spending this morning receiving briefings
ahead of taking over in Number 10.
He’ll also be working on his Downing Street speech, I’m
told.
It’s a big moment where he can set out a vision to the country.
Sunak in, Truss out: Key timings for today
Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images
It's going to be another busy day with one prime minister on their way out of No 10 and another due in - and all before lunch.
Let's remind you about what's happening and when:
09:00: Liz Truss will chair a cabinet meeting
10:15: The outgoing PM will make a statement outside No 10 before travelling to Buckingham Palace for her final audience with King Charles, where she will formally resign
Sunak, the new Conservative Party leader, will then travel to Buckingham Palace for his first audience with the monarch and be invited to form a government
11:35: Sunak - who will at this point officially be prime minister - will then travel to Downing Street and make his own statement before entering No 10 as the third prime minister this year
After that, all eyes will be on the PM to hear who has got a spot in his cabinet
What can we expect from Rishi Sunak as prime minister?
Chris Mason
Political editor
The BBC finds itself criticised now and again for broadcasting too many repeats.
So perhaps I should apologise, for it's just seven weeks to the day since I popped up to look ahead to a new prime minister assuming office.
Leading a fractious party, at a time of economic gloom, a war in Europe and without a mandate to call their own from the electorate.
And here we go again.
Except this time Rishi Sunak inherits all this as well as the extra challenge of the fallout of the insurrection against his predecessor Liz Truss.
Senior figures in government don't dispute that her vision, its near instant collapse and its consequences left the UK an international laughing stock.
So enter the latest new prime minister.
The fifth in a little over six years.
The third of this year.
The third in two months.
I know people like me keep wanging on about these kind of numbers.
We do because it is astonishing and utterly unprecedented.
The Tories don't trust the British people - Lib Dem leader
Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images
Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey has reiterated calls for a general election, but accepts this is unlikely right now.
"It's increasingly clear the Tories don’t trust the British people," he tells BBC's Today programme, adding "people are furious about that".
Davey says that while Rishi Sunak will deliver public spending cuts, he's "not convinced he’s going to look after the least well off in society".
He calls for a proper windfall tax - a one-off tax imposed by a government on a company - on oil and gas giants, "not the swiss cheese tax of Rishi Sunak".
The Lib Dem leader then takes aim at Sunak's track record as chancellor, accusing him of failing to help people with the cost of living crisis.
"He was boasting about taking funding from poorer areas to give it to richer areas," Davey says.
Public will pay for Tory mistakes - Labour MP
More now from Labour's Pat McFadden, who is speaking about the medium term fiscal plan due to be delivered by the chancellor on Monday.
"What seems to be the framework for that fiscal event is that, having caused chaos in financial markets, mortgages and pensions, the government is going to ask the public to pay for the price of that chaos through various cuts in public expenditure," he tells BBC's Breakfast.
People are already paying through higher mortgage rates, he adds.
"No one was talking about big public expenditure cuts back in September, before the mini-budget," he says.
"Now the Conservative party is about to ask the whole country to pay the price for the mistakes it has made."
The focus has been only on the Tory party instead of the country - Labour
Pat McFadden, Shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury, has been giving his reaction to Rishi Sunak becoming prime minister.
He says Sunak is the third PM in three months - the fifth in six years - "it's all been very chaotic and unstable," he adds.
He says this morning's newspaper headlines seem to be about uniting the Conservative Party, "but I think the country's got to come first here and stability for the country."
McFadden says the Tory's have bought us "all that instability and chaos in the first place" - adding the party Sunak represents is now “part of the problem, not part of the solution.”
"The reason we've been calling for a general election is that the more PMs into a parliament you get, the further away you get from a mandate," he says.
What are this morning's front pages saying?
Let's take a look at some of the front pages of this morning's newspapers as we wait for Rishi Sunak to officially become prime minister later today.
The Daily MailCopyright: The Daily Mail
The Daily Mail calls Sunak's victory "a new dawn for Britain" following weeks of turmoil within the Conservative Party. The paper says his win heralds the beginning of the "Tory fightback".Image caption: The Daily Mail calls Sunak's victory "a new dawn for Britain" following weeks of turmoil within the Conservative Party. The paper says his win heralds the beginning of the "Tory fightback".
Daily MirrorCopyright: Daily Mirror
The Daily Mirror takes a slightly different approach to Sunak becoming the new leader of the Conservative Party by asking "Who voted for you?". In a blunt assessment of the new prime minister, the paper points out that another Tory is poised to take power without winning a general election.Image caption: The Daily Mirror takes a slightly different approach to Sunak becoming the new leader of the Conservative Party by asking "Who voted for you?". In a blunt assessment of the new prime minister, the paper points out that another Tory is poised to take power without winning a general election.
The TimesCopyright: The Times
The Times speculates on which of Sunak's key allies could get cabinet positions, suggesting that there could be potential comebacks for former deputy prime minister Dominic Raab, and former Tory chairman Oliver Dowden. Cabinet roles are expected to be announced after the new PM meets the King.Image caption: The Times speculates on which of Sunak's key allies could get cabinet positions, suggesting that there could be potential comebacks for former deputy prime minister Dominic Raab, and former Tory chairman Oliver Dowden. Cabinet roles are expected to be announced after the new PM meets the King.
Daily StarCopyright: Daily Star
The Daily Star highlights that the UK is onto its third prime minister in a year by asking whether the former chancellor will last until the end of October in his new role.Image caption: The Daily Star highlights that the UK is onto its third prime minister in a year by asking whether the former chancellor will last until the end of October in his new role.
Sunak knows the job won't be easy
Nick Eardley
Chief political correspondent
It's been seven weeks since we last stood in Downing Street waiting for the arrival of a new prime minister.
At the time, we talked about Liz Truss’s in-tray being one of the most daunting in modern times. 49 days later, as Rishi Sunak prepares to move into Number 10, the challenge has only got greater.
His key task will be to stabilise the economy after recent turmoil. That will involve getting his head around the medium term fiscal plan due to be delivered by the chancellor next Monday. Difficult political choices are coming on spending and tax. They will not be popular.
Then there’s the cost of living crisis.
Sunak talked during the summer of prioritising those most in need. What will that look like when it comes to energy bills?
And then there’s economic growth. How is Sunak prepared to go to achieve it? Will he be prepared to push for more immigration or a closer trading relationship with Europe? Some want that, others don’t.
This is a big day for Rishi Sunak. But he knows the job won’t be easy.
What opposition parties are saying
Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images
Leaders from major opposition parties - including Labour, Lib Dems, SNP and Greens - have all spent the last few days calling for a general election.
Following the resignation of outgoing PM Liz Truss, they said it was time for the public to decide on the UK’s next leader, rather than the Conservative Party.
Nicola Sturgeon, the SNP leader and Scotland’s first minister, went as far as describing it as a “democratic imperative”.
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer, meanwhile, said the country couldn’t have “another experiment at the top of the Tory party" following Truss’s short and tumultuous stint in office.
As we’ve been reporting, the next election isn’t due until the beginning of 2025 and, based on Rishi Sunak’s comments yesterday, it looks like he has no plans to call one any earlier.
Rishi Sunak to become youngest PM in two centuries
Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images
Robert Banks Jenkinson, who assumed office in 1812 at the age of 42Image caption: Robert Banks Jenkinson, who assumed office in 1812 at the age of 42
Rishi Sunak is poised to become the UK's youngest prime minister for more than 200 years.
At 42, he is the same age Earl of Liverpool Robert Banks Jenkinson was when he came to office in 1812. Since then, David Cameron, who was elected at the age of 43 in 2010, has held the record as the youngest PM.
Tony Blair, who served from 1997-2007, was also 43 when he entered office - but he was a few months older than Cameron at the time Cameron entered No 10. But Sunak is not as young as William Pitt the Younger, who was 24 when he was elected in 1783.
WATCH: Sunak's rise to PM a 'ground-breaking milestone' - Biden
Video content
Video caption: Sunak's rise to PM a 'ground-breaking milestone' - BidenSunak's rise to PM a 'ground-breaking milestone' - Biden
US President Joe Biden has been sharing his thoughts on Rishi Sunak becoming the UK's first British Asian prime minister, saying "it matters" and is "pretty astounding".
Biden's comments came during a ceremony at the White House marking the Hindu festival of Diwali.
Rishi Sunak, who is a practising Hindu, will take office on Tuesday after being formally appointed by the King.
He will become the youngest prime minister for more than 200 years.
When is the next general election?
Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images
So Rishi Sunak is to be the UK's next prime minister - but before he’s even got into No 10, opposition parties and some members of the public are calling for a general election.
He’s the second Tory leader and PM to be installed without an election in a matter of weeks. Here’s why: UK general elections - where all 650 MPs are elected to the House of Commons - have to be held no more than five years apart.
And unless an earlier one is called, the next one isn't due until January 2025.
Upon winning the Tory leadership contest yesterday, Sunak immediately ruled out the possibility of calling an early general election - like the one Boris Johnson called in 2019.
Many reports, and opinion polls, have suggested that if one was called in the next few days, the Conservatives would lose to Labour.
Read more about the process of calling an early election here.
Sunak in, Truss out: Key timings for today
Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images
With one prime minister on their way out of No 10 and another due in before lunch, we’ve got quite a lot to get through. Here’s how today is looking:
09:00: Liz Truss will chair a cabinet meeting
10:15: The outgoing PM will make a statement outside No 10 before travelling to Buckingham Palace for her final audience with King Charles III, where she will formally resign
Sunak, the new Conservative Party leader, will then travel to Buckingham Palace for his first audience with the monarch and be invited to form a government
11:35: Sunak - who will at this point officially be prime minister - will then travel to Downing Street and make his own statement before entering No 10 as the third prime minister this year
After that, all eyes will be on the PM to hear who has got a spot in his cabinet
What happened yesterday?
As has been the short answer for days now, a lot. We saw one contender to replace Liz Truss drop out of the contest at the very last minute, and another successfully named Conservative Party leader.
In just a few hours we’ll see, and hear from, the new prime minister. But before that, let’s look back at Monday’s events:
Rishi Sunak was named the new leader of the Conservative Party and, by default, the next prime minister. He gained the support of more than half the number of Tory MPs
His rival Penny Mordaunt had hoped to just make the 100-nomination threshold needed to advance to the next stage of the contest, but moments before the 14:00 BST deadline she pulled out
In a statement, she said the decision to elect the UK’s first British Asian leader was “historic” and showed “once again the diversity and talent of our party”
Cabinet ministers, outgoing PM Liz Truss and dozens of Tory MPs congratulated Sunak, with many pledging to unite behind him
Sunak made a very brief statement at the Conservative Campaign HQ, where he said he would “serve with integrity” but warned of the “profound economic challenge” the country faces
Towards the end of the day, it was confirmed that Sunak – who’s about to become the youngest PM since 1812 – would take over from Truss this morning after meeting the King
Stay tuned for more, including the key timings for today.
Welcome
Hello, and thanks for joining us on what promises to be another momentous day in UK politics.
After weeks of financial turmoil, U-turns and a shock leadership contest, we’re set to see Rishi Sunak enter 10 Downing Street as the UK’s 57th prime minister.
Later this morning, following one last goodbye from outgoing PM Liz Truss, Sunak will head to Buckingham Palace where King Charles III will invite the new leader of the Conservative Party to form a government.
There’s that - as well as a statement by Sunak outside No 10 - to come, so stay with us for live updates.
Live Reporting
Edited by Heather Sharp and Sarah Fowler
All times stated are UK
Get involved
Sunak prepares for his big day
Nick Eardley
Chief political correspondent
Rishi Sunak is spending this morning receiving briefings ahead of taking over in Number 10.
He’ll also be working on his Downing Street speech, I’m told.
It’s a big moment where he can set out a vision to the country.
Sunak in, Truss out: Key timings for today
It's going to be another busy day with one prime minister on their way out of No 10 and another due in - and all before lunch.
Let's remind you about what's happening and when:
What can we expect from Rishi Sunak as prime minister?
Chris Mason
Political editor
The BBC finds itself criticised now and again for broadcasting too many repeats.
So perhaps I should apologise, for it's just seven weeks to the day since I popped up to look ahead to a new prime minister assuming office.
Leading a fractious party, at a time of economic gloom, a war in Europe and without a mandate to call their own from the electorate.
And here we go again.
Except this time Rishi Sunak inherits all this as well as the extra challenge of the fallout of the insurrection against his predecessor Liz Truss.
Senior figures in government don't dispute that her vision, its near instant collapse and its consequences left the UK an international laughing stock.
So enter the latest new prime minister.
The fifth in a little over six years.
The third of this year.
The third in two months.
I know people like me keep wanging on about these kind of numbers.
We do because it is astonishing and utterly unprecedented.
Read more here.
The Tories don't trust the British people - Lib Dem leader
Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey has reiterated calls for a general election, but accepts this is unlikely right now.
"It's increasingly clear the Tories don’t trust the British people," he tells BBC's Today programme, adding "people are furious about that".
Davey says that while Rishi Sunak will deliver public spending cuts, he's "not convinced he’s going to look after the least well off in society".
He calls for a proper windfall tax - a one-off tax imposed by a government on a company - on oil and gas giants, "not the swiss cheese tax of Rishi Sunak".
The Lib Dem leader then takes aim at Sunak's track record as chancellor, accusing him of failing to help people with the cost of living crisis.
He also criticises Sunak's admission which emerged during this summer's Tory leadership race - which he lost to Liz Truss - that he diverted public money from "deprived urban areas".
"He was boasting about taking funding from poorer areas to give it to richer areas," Davey says.
Public will pay for Tory mistakes - Labour MP
More now from Labour's Pat McFadden, who is speaking about the medium term fiscal plan due to be delivered by the chancellor on Monday.
"What seems to be the framework for that fiscal event is that, having caused chaos in financial markets, mortgages and pensions, the government is going to ask the public to pay for the price of that chaos through various cuts in public expenditure," he tells BBC's Breakfast.
People are already paying through higher mortgage rates, he adds.
"No one was talking about big public expenditure cuts back in September, before the mini-budget," he says.
"Now the Conservative party is about to ask the whole country to pay the price for the mistakes it has made."
The focus has been only on the Tory party instead of the country - Labour
Pat McFadden, Shadow Chief Secretary to the Treasury, has been giving his reaction to Rishi Sunak becoming prime minister.
He says Sunak is the third PM in three months - the fifth in six years - "it's all been very chaotic and unstable," he adds.
He says this morning's newspaper headlines seem to be about uniting the Conservative Party, "but I think the country's got to come first here and stability for the country."
McFadden says the Tory's have bought us "all that instability and chaos in the first place" - adding the party Sunak represents is now “part of the problem, not part of the solution.”
"The reason we've been calling for a general election is that the more PMs into a parliament you get, the further away you get from a mandate," he says.
What are this morning's front pages saying?
Let's take a look at some of the front pages of this morning's newspapers as we wait for Rishi Sunak to officially become prime minister later today.
Sunak knows the job won't be easy
Nick Eardley
Chief political correspondent
It's been seven weeks since we last stood in Downing Street waiting for the arrival of a new prime minister.
At the time, we talked about Liz Truss’s in-tray being one of the most daunting in modern times. 49 days later, as Rishi Sunak prepares to move into Number 10, the challenge has only got greater.
His key task will be to stabilise the economy after recent turmoil. That will involve getting his head around the medium term fiscal plan due to be delivered by the chancellor next Monday. Difficult political choices are coming on spending and tax. They will not be popular.
Then there’s the cost of living crisis.
Sunak talked during the summer of prioritising those most in need. What will that look like when it comes to energy bills?
And then there’s economic growth. How is Sunak prepared to go to achieve it? Will he be prepared to push for more immigration or a closer trading relationship with Europe? Some want that, others don’t.
This is a big day for Rishi Sunak. But he knows the job won’t be easy.
What opposition parties are saying
Leaders from major opposition parties - including Labour, Lib Dems, SNP and Greens - have all spent the last few days calling for a general election.
Following the resignation of outgoing PM Liz Truss, they said it was time for the public to decide on the UK’s next leader, rather than the Conservative Party.
Nicola Sturgeon, the SNP leader and Scotland’s first minister, went as far as describing it as a “democratic imperative”.
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer, meanwhile, said the country couldn’t have “another experiment at the top of the Tory party" following Truss’s short and tumultuous stint in office.
As we’ve been reporting, the next election isn’t due until the beginning of 2025 and, based on Rishi Sunak’s comments yesterday, it looks like he has no plans to call one any earlier.
Rishi Sunak to become youngest PM in two centuries
Rishi Sunak is poised to become the UK's youngest prime minister for more than 200 years.
At 42, he is the same age Earl of Liverpool Robert Banks Jenkinson was when he came to office in 1812. Since then, David Cameron, who was elected at the age of 43 in 2010, has held the record as the youngest PM.
Tony Blair, who served from 1997-2007, was also 43 when he entered office - but he was a few months older than Cameron at the time Cameron entered No 10. But Sunak is not as young as William Pitt the Younger, who was 24 when he was elected in 1783.
WATCH: Sunak's rise to PM a 'ground-breaking milestone' - Biden
Video content
US President Joe Biden has been sharing his thoughts on Rishi Sunak becoming the UK's first British Asian prime minister, saying "it matters" and is "pretty astounding".
Biden's comments came during a ceremony at the White House marking the Hindu festival of Diwali.
Rishi Sunak, who is a practising Hindu, will take office on Tuesday after being formally appointed by the King.
He will become the youngest prime minister for more than 200 years.
When is the next general election?
So Rishi Sunak is to be the UK's next prime minister - but before he’s even got into No 10, opposition parties and some members of the public are calling for a general election.
He’s the second Tory leader and PM to be installed without an election in a matter of weeks. Here’s why: UK general elections - where all 650 MPs are elected to the House of Commons - have to be held no more than five years apart.
And unless an earlier one is called, the next one isn't due until January 2025.
Upon winning the Tory leadership contest yesterday, Sunak immediately ruled out the possibility of calling an early general election - like the one Boris Johnson called in 2019.
Many reports, and opinion polls, have suggested that if one was called in the next few days, the Conservatives would lose to Labour.
Read more about the process of calling an early election here.
Sunak in, Truss out: Key timings for today
With one prime minister on their way out of No 10 and another due in before lunch, we’ve got quite a lot to get through. Here’s how today is looking:
What happened yesterday?
As has been the short answer for days now, a lot. We saw one contender to replace Liz Truss drop out of the contest at the very last minute, and another successfully named Conservative Party leader.
In just a few hours we’ll see, and hear from, the new prime minister. But before that, let’s look back at Monday’s events:
Stay tuned for more, including the key timings for today.
Welcome
Hello, and thanks for joining us on what promises to be another momentous day in UK politics.
After weeks of financial turmoil, U-turns and a shock leadership contest, we’re set to see Rishi Sunak enter 10 Downing Street as the UK’s 57th prime minister.
Later this morning, following one last goodbye from outgoing PM Liz Truss, Sunak will head to Buckingham Palace where King Charles III will invite the new leader of the Conservative Party to form a government.
There’s that - as well as a statement by Sunak outside No 10 - to come, so stay with us for live updates.