Who is in the running to replace Liz Truss as prime minister?
Just two days ago Liz Truss declared she was a “fighter, not a quitter” in a defiant exchange with the leader of the opposition – a little over 24 hours later she had resigned.
Here, Sky News looks at the runners and riders to replace the prime minister.
Live politics updates as third cabinet member backs Johnson
The leader of the Commons was the first to announce a bid to become the next prime minister.
“I’ve been encouraged by support from colleagues who want a fresh start, a united party and leadership in the national interest,” she said in a post on social media.
“I’m running to be the leader of the Conservative Party and your prime minister – to unite our country, deliver our pledges and win the next GE.”
She finished in third place in this summer’s Tory leadership race before she backed Ms Truss’s bid.
The former defence secretary caused a stir at the Tory conference earlier this month when she said the party’s “comms is s***”.
In messages shared in Conservative Party WhatsApp groups, leaked to Sky News, Tory MP Crispin Blunt called for Mr Sunak and Ms Mordaunt to take over.
“Step forward Rishi and Penny, with our support and encouragement in the interests of us all,” he wrote.
Ms Mordaunt was sent to the Commons on behalf of Ms Truss to answer an urgent question on the sacking of former chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng on Monday. She denied that Ms Truss was hiding “under a desk”.
Former Commons leader Andrea Leadsom is among those who have publicly declared their backing of Ms Mordaunt.
The former chancellor, who was runner-up to Ms Truss in the Tory leadership race, is favourite with the bookmakers to replace her.
He warned his rival her tax-cutting plans would send the economy into freefall, accusing her of “fairytale economics” as she promised unfunded tax cuts.
Following the fallout from the mini-budget, supporters of Mr Sunak believe he has been vindicated. One MP who supported him in the leadership race told The Telegraph: “Everything he said has come to pass.”
Mr Sunak won every voting round among MPs in the Tory leadership race but there are question marks over whether he could reunite the party, having been seen to have played a key role in Boris Johnson’s exit as PM.
Many MPs have come out in support of the former chancellor, the most notable being former deputy PM Dominic Raab and former environment secretary George Eustice.
In his farewell address as PM, Mr Johnson fuelled speculation about a future return to frontline politics despite promising his “most fervent support” to his successor Ms Truss.
Mr Johnson compared himself to Roman statesman Cincinnatus, who battled against invasion before returning to his farm. According to tradition, Cincinnatus later returned to serve a second term.
Some Tory MPs are reportedly openly suggesting the party asks Mr Johnson to return to Downing Street, despite being ousted just three months ago.
Read more:
Boris Johnson ‘could secure enough Tory backers’ to enter leadership race
Demands are growing for a general election – here’s how it could happen
Resignations, reversals and rebellion – the 44 days of Liz Truss’s premiership
Former culture secretary and ally of the former PM, Nadine Dorries, is one of those openly calling for Mr Johnson’s return.
“Only one MP has a mandate from party members and from the British public – a mandate with an 80 seat majority. Boris Johnson,” she said.
Jacob Rees-Mogg was the first cabinet minister to publicly declare his backing for the former prime minister, posting on social media: “I’m backing Boris #BorisorBust.”
In ruling himself out of the race, Ben Wallace, the defence secretary, said he is “leaning towards Boris Johnson”.
Levelling Up Secretary Simon Clarke has also expressed his support for Mr Johnson’s return.
Sky News also understands former home secretary Priti Patel will back Mr Johnson if he chooses to run.
Although multiple Tory MPs have expressed their support for a Johnson comeback, he remains a divisive figure.
Foreign Office minister Jesse Norman said selecting Mr Johnson as Conservative leader would be “absolutely catastrophic”.
Sir Roger Gale, the senior backbencher, reminded voters in a tweet that the former prime minister, who resigned in a mire of sleaze, remains under investigation by the Commons privileges committee for potentially misleading the House over partygate.
If found guilty, Mr Johnson could face recall proceedings and potentially lose his seat in a by-election if he receives a suspension of 10 days or more.
The Liberal Democrats are calling for Mr Johnson to be blocked from standing as leader of the Conservative Party and prime minister.
Ms Braverman was the first to declare she was running to be the next Conservative Party leader in the summer, praised as a figurehead of the right of the party for her hardline views on Brexit and for denouncing “woke nonsense”.
She threw her hat in the ring for the Tory leadership even before Mr Johnson had officially resigned.
“I love this country. My parents came here with absolutely nothing and it was Britain that gave them hope, security and opportunity and afforded me incredible opportunities in education and my career,” she told ITV at the time.
“I owe a debt of gratitude to this country and to serve as prime minister would be the greatest honour so yes I will try.”
After her shock resignation as home secretary on Wednesday for sharing secure information through a private email, Ms Braverman lashed out at Ms Truss’s “tumultuous” premiership and accused the government of “breaking key pledges” – including on immigration policy.
Ms Braverman, a former attorney general, only became home secretary on 6 September when Ms Truss brought her in to replace Priti Patel.
Her tenure was controversial, having accused Tory critics, who successfully forced Ms Truss into U-turning over plans to scrap the top rate of income tax, of a “coup”.
A source close to rising star Kemi Badenoch has suggested to Sky News that she is set to stand in the leadership contest.
“Now that the prime minister has announced her resignation, the party must unite around a new leader who restores trust in politics and delivers good government for the British people,” the source said.
“Kemi is in conversations with colleagues about how best to achieve this.”
Ms Badenoch stood in the Conservative leadership race over the summer, coming fourth behind Mr Sunak, Ms Mordaunt and Ms Truss.
Little known beyond Tory circles at the start of the race, the former equalities minister was a favourite among members to the right of the party.
Her summer campaign focused on cultural issues which she said had divided the party in recent years.
Sky News understands the current justice secretary is taking soundings on whether to stand in the leadership election.
It is understood he could stand on a possible platform of being a pragmatist and a unifier.
Mr Lewis did not stand in the last leadership election, instead backing outgoing PM Liz Truss.
He has also served as Northern Ireland secretary.
World
Trump criticises Putin after potentially ‘historic’ meeting with Zelenskyy before Pope’s funeral
Donald Trump has criticised Vladimir Putin and suggested a shift in his stance towards the Russian president after a meeting with Volodymyr Zelenskyy before the Pope’s funeral.
The Ukrainian president said the one-on-one talks could prove to be “historic” after pictures showed him sitting opposite Mr Trump, around two feet apart, in the large marble hall inside St Peter’s Basilica.
The US president said he doubted his Russian counterpart’s willingness to end the war after leaving Rome after the funeral of Pope Francis at the Vatican.
Follow live updates: 200,000 mourn at Vatican
In a post on his Truth Social platform, he said “there was no reason” for the Russian president “to be shooting missiles into civilian areas, cities and towns, over the last few days”.
The two leaders held talks before attending the Pope’s funeral
He added: “It makes me think that maybe he doesn’t want to stop the war, he’s just tapping me along, and has to be dealt with differently, through ‘Banking’ or ‘Secondary Sanctions?’ Too many people are dying!!!”
The meeting between the US and Ukrainian leaders was their first face-to-face encounter since a very public row in the Oval Office in February.
Mr Zelenskyy said he had a good meeting with Mr Trump in which they talked about the defence of the Ukrainian people, a full and unconditional ceasefire, and a durable and lasting peace that would prevent the war restarting.
Other images released by the Ukrainian president’s office show Sir Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron were present for part of the talks, which were described as “positive” by the French presidency.
Mr Zelenskyy‘s spokesman said the meeting lasted for around 15 minutes and he and Mr Trump had agreed to hold further discussions later on Saturday.
The world leaders shared a moment before the service
Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelenskyy meet in the Basilica
But the US president left Rome for Washington on Air Force One soon after the funeral without any other talks having taken place.
The Ukrainian president’s office said there was no second meeting in Rome because of the tight schedule of both leaders, although he had separate discussions with Mr Starmer and Mr Macron.
The French president said in a post on X “Ukraine is ready for an unconditional ceasefire” and that a so-called coalition of the willing, led by the UK and France, would continue working to achieve a lasting peace.
There was applause from some of the other world leaders in attendance at the Vatican when Mr Zelenskyy walked out of St Peter’s Basilica after stopping in front of the pontiff’s coffin to pay his respects.
Donald Trump and the Ukrainian president met for the first time since their Oval Office row. Pic: Reuters
Sir Tony Brenton, the former British ambassador to Russia, said the event presents diplomatic opportunities, including the “biggest possible meeting” between Mr Trump and the Ukrainian leader.
He told Sky News it could mark “an important step” in starting the peace process between Russia and Ukraine.
Professor Father Francesco Giordano told Sky News the meeting is being called “Pope Francis’s miracle” by members of the clergy, adding: “There’s so many things that happened today – it was just overwhelming.”
The bilateral meeting comes after Mr Trump’s peace negotiator Steve Witkoff held talks with Mr Putin at the Kremlin.
They discussed “the possibility of resuming direct negotiations between Russia and Ukraine”, Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov said.
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Russia and Ukraine have not held direct talks since the early weeks of the war, which began in February 2022.
Mr Trump has claimed a deal to end the war is “very close” and has urged Mr Zelenskyy to “get it done” in a post on his Truth Social platform.
He has previously warned both sides his administration would walk away from its efforts to achieve a peace if the two sides do not agree a deal soon.
Meanwhile, the Polish armed forces said a Russian military helicopter violated its airspace over the Baltic Sea on Friday evening.
“The nature of the incident indicates that Russia is testing the readiness of our air defence systems,” they said in a post on X.
On an extraordinary day, remarkable pictures on the margins that capture what may be a turning point for the world.
In a corner of St Peter’s Basilica before the funeral of Pope Francis, the leaders of America and Ukraine sit facing each other in two solitary chairs.
They look like confessor and sinner except we cannot tell which one is which.
Leaning forward hands together in their laps, Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelenskyy stare at each other in one photo.
In another, the Ukrainian president seems to be remonstrating with the US president. This is their first encounter since their infamous bust-up in the Oval Office.
The two leaders held talks before attending the Pope’s funeral
Other pictures show the moment their French and British counterparts introduced the two men. There is a palpable sense of nervousness in the way the leaders engage.
We do not know what the two presidents said in their brief meeting.
But in the mind of the Ukrainian leader will be the knowledge President Trump has this week said America will reward Russia for its unprovoked brutal invasion of his country, under any peace deal.
Mr Trump has presented Ukraine and Russia with a proposal and ultimatum so one-sided it could have been written in the Kremlin.
Kyiv must surrender the land Russia has taken by force, Crimea forever, the rest at least for now. And it must submit to an act of extortion, a proposed deal that would hand over half its mineral wealth effectively to America.
The world leaders shared a moment before the service
Afterwards, Zelenskyy said it had been a good meeting that could turn out to be historic “if we reach results together”.
They had talked, he said, about the defence of Ukraine, a full and unconditional ceasefire and a durable and lasting peace that will prevent a war restarting.
The Trump peace proposal includes only unspecified security guarantees for Ukraine from countries that do not include the US. It rules out any membership of Ukraine.
Ukraine’s allies are watching closely to see if Mr Trump will apply any pressure on Vladimir Putin, let alone punish him for recent bloody attacks on Ukraine.
Or will he simply walk away if the proposal fails, blaming Ukrainian intransigence, however outrageously, before moving onto a rapprochement with Moscow.
If he does, America’s role as guarantor of international security will be seen effectively as over.
This could be the week we see the world order as we have known it since the end of the Second World War buried, as well as a pope.
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