Summary

  • PM Rishi Sunak and Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer address the crisis in Israel and Gaza at Prime Minister's Questions

  • Sunak says the UK is working with allies to establish what happened the Al Ahli hospital in Gaza on Tuesday night, where a blast left many dead

  • Starmer says the blast in Gaza - which Hamas and Israel blamed on each other - is "incredibly distressing" and calls for international law to be upheld to protect civilians

  • Both Sunak and Starmer condemn the recent rise in antisemitic incidents in the UK

  • Responding to an urgent question from Labour on the hospital blast, Foreign Secretary James Cleverly says the UK is "carefully analysing evidence"

  • He says the government "will not rush to judgement" but "as soon as we reach a definitive conclusion we will make it public"

  1. Inflation rate sticks at 6.7% ahead of PMQspublished at 11:47 British Summer Time 18 October 2023

    Halving inflation (the rate at which prices rise) by the end of the year is one of Rishi Sunak's five pledges for 2023 - and he's made clear it's his top priority.

    Inflation has been falling, but this morning official figures showed the overall rate of inflation remained at 6.7% in September, after three months of falls.

    Food prices saw their first monthly fall in two years, but that was offset by a sharp rise in fuel prices.

    The price of milk, cheese and eggs all decreased, easing the pressure at supermarket tills.

    Analysts had expected a slight fall in inflation, which stood at 10.5% at the end of 2022.

  2. Two key by-elections loompublished at 11:40 British Summer Time 18 October 2023

    Both Rishi Sunak and Keir Starmer will have an eye on tomorrow's by-elections in Mid Bedfordshire and Tamworth.

    Mid-Bedfordshire faces a by-election after Conservative MP and ex-cabinet minister Nadine Dorries quit after she wasn't granted a peerage in Boris Johnson's resignation honours.

    Check out the full list of candidates standing in the constituency here.

    Tamworth faces a by-election after the resignation of ex-Conservative MP Chris Pincher, who quit after losing an appeal against a proposed Commons suspension for drunkenly groping two men.

    Read up on everyone who is standing in Tamworth here.

    Incidentally, we'll have live coverage through the night as the votes are counted - so check back in with us tomorrow evening.

  3. Sunak leaves Downing Streetpublished at 11:34 British Summer Time 18 October 2023

    We've just spotted the prime minister leaving No 10 to make the short journey down the road to Parliament.

    Sunak exits No 10 for ParliamentImage source, PA Media
  4. PMQs is back!published at 11:30 British Summer Time 18 October 2023

    Sunak and StarmerImage source, PA Media
    Image caption,

    They're going to be facing off, like this, but with more drama

    Rishi Sunak and Labour leader Keir Starmer are facing off at PMQs today for the first time since the Tory and Labour party conferences.

    So what can we expect?

    Whilst a slew of domestic matters could feature, it's likely the crisis in Gaza and Israel will dominate - with speculation growing the PM might make a visit to the region in the coming days.

    Another square on the bingo card is UK inflation sticking at 6.7% in September, the same rate as August, according to fresh figures from the Office for National Statistics.

    The government promised to get the main rate of inflation around 5.3% by the end of the year.

    And it's all happening ahead of two key by-elections in Mid Bedfordshire and Tamworth tomorrow - people will be voting to replace former Tory MPs Chris Pincher and Nadine Dorries.

    We'll bring you all the highlights and analysis right here - and you can watch along by tapping play at the top of the page.