Rishi Sunak to become next PM

Rishi Sunak is set to become the next leader of the Conservative party and the UK prime minister after becoming the sole candidate to surpass the threshold of 100 votes.

Penny Mordaunt announced she was withdrawing from the race only minutes before the nominations deadline at 14:00 BST today (24 October), when it was to be confirmed who had passed the threshold.

Boris Johnson, who was expected to officially re-run for the position, confirmed in a statement on Sunday 23 October that he would not be participating in the race, saying it was “simply not the right time”.

Sunak will be the UK’s third leader in seven weeks and the first British Asian prime minister in history.

Confirming to Westminster, Sir Graham Brady, chairman of the 1922 Committee, said: “As returning officer of the leadership election I can confirm we received one valid nomination. Rishi Sunak is therefore elected as leader of the Conservative Party.” 

The news comes after Liz Truss resigned as prime minister after a turbulent time for the government, just six weeks after taking up the premiership.

Speaking outside Number 10, Truss said at the time: “I recognise, given the situation, I cannot deliver the mandate for which I have been elected.”

The government had faced increasing instability in recent weeks, with a series of U-turns made following the mini-budget of former chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng which led to market turmoil and the pound falling to a 37-year low against the dollar.

Also last week, newly appointed chancellor Jeremy Hunt was forced to reverse almost all of the mini-budget commitments made by Kwarteng last month.

He confirmed the basic rate of income tax will remain at 20% “indefinitely” until the economic situation stabilises, marking a U-turn from previous plans to lower the rate to 19%.

Kate Nicholls, chief executive of UKHospitality, said: “This is a critical time for hospitality businesses as they battle soaring energy costs, workforce shortages and waning consumer confidence, so stable political leadership is absolutely critical. Now is the time to steady the economy, deliver for the needs of the country and support businesses to help drive growth and create jobs.

“Hospitality clearly displayed its ability to grow prior to the pandemic and was on the road to a strong recovery before the energy crisis hit. It can return to those levels through pragmatic decision-making that eases the acute challenges businesses are facing.”

She added: “We worked very closely with the new Prime Minister in his previous role and we look forward to working with him again to address the current strain on businesses and bolster consumer confidence. I would encourage him to extend business rates relief, reform the entire business rates system in the longer term and lower the current rate of VAT.”