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Sir Keir Starmer has called for an immediate general election after Liz Truss announced her resignation as prime minister.

The Labour leader said the Conservative Party has “shown it no longer has a mandate to govern”, adding that British people “deserve so much better than this revolving door of chaos”.

“The Tories cannot respond to their latest shambles by yet again simply clicking their fingers and shuffling the people at the top without the consent of the British people,” Sir Keir said in a statement.

UK to have new PM in a week – follow Politics latest

“They do not have a mandate to put the country through yet another experiment; Britain is not their personal fiefdom to run how they wish.”

“The British public deserve a proper say on the country’s future.

“They must have the chance to compare the Tories’ chaos with Labour’s plans to sort out their mess, grow the economy for working people and rebuild the country for a fairer, greener future.

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“We must have a chance at a fresh start. We need a general election – now.”

Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey echoed the call for the public to go to the polls.

“We don’t need another Conservative prime minister lurching from crisis to crisis,” he said on social media.

“We need a general election now and the Conservatives out of power.”

As did First Minister of Wales, Mark Drakeford, who said: “A general election is now the only way to end this paralysis.”

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‘Public are entitled to a say’

Plaid Cymru leader Adam Price and Westminster leader Liz Saville Roberts agreed, adding: “We urgently need a general election so that the people of Wales can reject this Westminster chaos at the ballot box.”

Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon described the events in Westminster as an “utter shambles”.

“There are no words to describe this utter shambles adequately. It’s beyond hyperbole and parody,” Ms Sturgeon said.

“Reality though is that ordinary people are paying the price. The interests of the Tory party should concern no-one right now.

“A general election is now a democratic imperative.”

Read more: Who would replace Truss as PM?

Andrew RT Davies, leader of the Conservatives in the Senedd, said Ms Truss had done the “right thing” in standing down.

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Liz Truss’s rise and fall

Leader of the Scottish Conservatives, Douglas Ross, agreed that Ms Truss had made “the right decision”.

“We must now move forward quickly and the new Leader and Prime Minister will have to restore stability for the good of the country,” he said in a post on social media.

While Commons Leader Penny Mordaunt told MPs she would “keep calm and carry on” and encouraged others to do the same.

Asked in the chamber about Liz Truss’s resignation and the state of the government, Ms Mordaunt – who is considered a potential successor to the PM – said: “I am going to keep calm and carry on – and I would suggest everyone else do the same.”

Across the pond, US President Joe Biden has also responded to Ms Truss’s resignation.

“The United States and the United Kingdom are strong allies and enduring friends – and that fact will never change,” he said in a statement.

Ms Truss departs Number 10 just 44 days after taking over from Boris Johnson.

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Trump vowed to end Ukraine war in first 24 hours of his presidency – nearly 200 days in, could he be close?

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Trump vowed to end Ukraine war in first 24 hours of his presidency  - nearly 200 days in, could he be close?

Seven hours is a long time in US politics.

At 10am, Donald Trump accused Russia of posing a threat to America’s national security.

By 5pm, Mr Trump said there was a “good prospect” of him meeting Vladimir Putin “soon”.

There had, he claimed, been “great progress” in talks between his special envoy Steve Witkoff and the Russian president.

It’s difficult to gauge the chances of a meeting between the two leaders without knowing what “great progress” means.

Is Russia “inclined” towards agreeing a ceasefire, as Ukraine’s president now claims?

Is Mr Putin prepared to meet with his Ukrainian foe, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, too?

The very fact that we’re asking those questions suggests something shifted on a day when there was no expectation of a breakthrough.

Read more from Sky News:
Woman told she may lose leg after liquid Brazilian butt lift
Zoo kills 12 healthy baboons to ease overcrowding

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Mr Trump repeatedly vowed to end the war within 24 hours of becoming president.

On day 198 of his presidency, he might, just might, be one step closer to achieving that.

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Zoo staff face death threats for feeding baboon remains to lions

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Zoo staff face death threats for feeding baboon remains to lions

Staff at a zoo in Germany which culled 12 baboons and fed some of their carcasses to the lions say they have received death threats.

Tiergarten Nuremberg euthanised the healthy Guinea baboons at the end of July due to overcrowding in their enclosure.

Some remains were used for research while the rest were fed to the zoo’s carnivores.

Plans to kill the baboons were first announced last year after the population exceeded 40, and protestors gathered outside the zoo to show their outrage.

When the site closed last Tuesday to carry out the cull, several activists were arrested after climbing the fence.

The director of the zoo defended the decision, saying efforts to sterilise and rehome some baboons had failed.

“We love these animals. We want to save a species. But for the sake of the species, we have to kill individuals otherwise we are not able to keep up a population in a restricted area,” Dr Dag Encke told Sky News.

These are not the specific animals involved. File pics: Reuters
Image:
These are not the specific animals involved. File pics: Reuters

‘The staff are suffering’

He said police are investigating after he and the staff were sent death threats.

“The staff are really suffering, sorting out all these bad words, insults and threats,” Dr Encke said.

“The normal threat is ‘we will kill you, and we’ll feed you to the lions’.

“But what is really disgusting is when they say that’s worse than Dr Mengele from the National Socialists, who was one of the most cruel people in human history.

“That is really insulting all the victims of the Second World War and the Nazi regime.”

Josef Mengele was a Nazi officer who performed deadly experiments on prisoners at the Auschwitz concentration camp during the Second World War.

Dr Dag Encke
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Dr Dag Encke

Zoo animals ‘treated as commodities’

Culling animals and feeding them to predators isn’t unheard of in zoos.

In 2014, Copenhagen Zoo caused controversy by euthanizing an 18-month-old male giraffe called Marius and feeding his body to the lions.

At the time, the zoo said it was due to a duty to avoid inbreeding.

Dr Mark Jones, a vet and head of policy at Born Free Foundation, a charity which campaigns for animals to be kept in the wild, denounced the practice and said thousands of healthy animals are being destroyed by zoos each year.

“It reflects the fact animals in zoos are often treated as commodities that are disposable or replaceable,” he said.

Marius the giraffe was put down and publicly fed to lions at at Copenhagen Zoo in Denmark. Pic: Keld Navntoft/AFP/Getty
Image:
Marius the giraffe was put down and publicly fed to lions at at Copenhagen Zoo in Denmark. Pic: Keld Navntoft/AFP/Getty


Zoo asks for unwanted pets

Earlier this week, a zoo in Denmark faced a backlash for asking for unwanted pets to be donated to be used as food for its predators.

In a Facebook post, Aalborg Zoo said it could take smaller live animals such as chickens, rabbits and guinea pigs, as well as horses under 147cm. It said the animals would be euthanised by specially trained staff before being fed to carnivores like the European lynx.

While some people supported the scheme, saying they had donated animals in the past, others are outraged.

“The very idea of a zoo offering to take unwanted pets in order to kill them and feed them to their predators will, I think, horrify most right-minded people,” said Dr Jones.

Read more from Sky News:
Trump could meet Putin next week
Woman told she may lose leg after BBL

Dr Mark Jones
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Dr Mark Jones

Aalborg Zoo has now closed the post to comments and said in a statement: “For many years at Aalborg Zoo, we have fed our carnivores with smaller livestock.

“When keeping carnivores, it is necessary to provide them with meat, preferably with fur, bones, etc., to give them as natural a diet as possible.

“Therefore, it makes sense to allow animals that need to be euthanised for various reasons to be of use in this way.

“In Denmark, this practice is common, and many of our guests and partners appreciate the opportunity to contribute.”

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Trump could meet Putin as early as next week to discuss Ukraine ceasefire – White House official

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Trump could meet Putin as early as next week to discuss Ukraine ceasefire - White House official

Donald Trump could meet Vladimir Putin in person as early as next week to discuss a ceasefire in Ukraine, a White House official has said.

They said the meeting would be conditional on the Russian president meeting his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Sky News’s US partner network NBC News reported.

It came days before the White House’s deadline for Russia to reach a peace deal with Ukraine or face severe economic penalties, which could also target countries buying its oil.

Ukraine war latest

Asked during a news conference at the White House if the talks would take place, Mr Trump said: “There’s a very good prospect that they will.”

He said it had not been determined where the talks would take place, but added: “We had some very good talks with President Putin today.”

However, he said: “I’ve been disappointed before with this one.”

Asked if Mr Putin made any kind of concession to lead to the development, Mr Trump did not give much away, but added: “We’ve been working on this a long time. There are thousands of young people dying, mostly soldiers, but also, you know, missiles being hit into Kyiv and other places.”

Trump might finally be a step closer to ending the war

Seven hours is a long time in US politics.

At 10am, Donald Trump accused Russia of posing a threat to America’s national security.

At 5pm, Trump said there was a “good prospect” of him meeting Vladimir Putin “soon”.

There had, he claimed, been “great progress” in talks between his special envoy Steve Witkoff and the Russian president.

It’s difficult to gauge the chances of a meeting between the two leaders without knowing what “great progress” means.

Is Russia “inclined” towards agreeing a ceasefire, as Ukraine’s president now claims?

Is Putin prepared to meet with his Ukrainian foe Volodymyr Zelenskyy, too?

The very fact that we’re asking those questions suggests something shifted on a day when there was no expectation of breakthrough.

Trump repeatedly vowed to end the war within 24 hours of becoming president.

On day 198 of his presidency, he might, just might, be one step closer to achieving that.

More tariffs ‘could happen’

Mr Trump also said he could announce further tariffs on China similar to the 25% he announced on India over its purchases of Russian oil.

“Could happen,” he said, after saying he expected to announce more secondary sanctions intended to pressure Russia into ending its war with Ukraine.

Earlier, he imposed an additional 25% tariff on Indian goods, on top of a previous 25% tariff, over its continued purchases of Russian oil.

India’s foreign ministry spokesperson said the additional tariffs were “unfair, unjustified and unreasonable”.

Vladimir Putin welcomes Steve Witkoff during a meeting in Moscow. Pic: Sputnik/Reuters
Image:
Vladimir Putin welcomes Steve Witkoff during a meeting in Moscow. Pic: Sputnik/Reuters

It came after Mr Putin held talks with Mr Trump‘s special envoy Steve Witkoff in Moscow, with the meeting lasting around three hours.

In a post on Truth Social, Mr Trump said Mr Witkoff “had a highly productive meeting” with Mr Putin in which “great progress was made”.

He said he had updated America’s European allies, and they will work towards an end to the Russia-Ukraine war “in the days and weeks to come”.

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Correspondents in Washington and Moscow break down a busy day of diplomacy

‘The war must end’

Mr Zelenskyy later said he and Mr Trump spoke on the phone after the meeting. He said “European leaders also participated in the conversation” and “we discussed what was said in Moscow”.

He added: “Our common position with our partners is absolutely clear: The war must end. We all need lasting and reliable peace. Russia must end the war that it started.”

Mr Zelenskyy later said: “It seems that Russia is now more inclined to agree to a ceasefire.”

He added that the pressure on Moscow “is working”, without elaborating, and stressed it was important to make sure Russia does not “deceive us or the United States” when it comes to “the details” of a potential agreement.

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