UK

Rishi Sunak will make his debut at Prime Minister’s Questions at lunchtime, in what is shaping up to be the first big test of his leadership.  The new PM will face Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer in the Commons – a day after culling almost a dozen Conservative ministers from the cabinet. Jacob Rees-Mogg has

Rishi Sunak has made his first speech as prime minister, saying he was chosen to take over to “fix” the mistakes made by Liz Truss. Speaking outside Number 10, the former chancellor praised his predecessor’s “restlessness” and her “noble aim” to improve economic growth in the UK. But, he added: “Some mistakes were made, not

The families of premature babies face being pushed into poverty or missing out on time with their sick children amid the rising cost of living. On average, parents are paying an extra £405 per week while their baby is in hospital, according to a survey of 1,928 people. For many, it is a double-edged sword

Rishi Sunak will become the UK’s next prime minister after Conservative leadership rival Penny Mordaunt dropped out of the race at the last minute. The former chancellor was selected by MPs to succeed Liz Truss as Tory leader and will enter Downing Street less than two months after he lost the last race. The extraordinary

Boris Johnson has pulled out of the Conservative leadership race. His withdrawal leaves the path open for Rishi Sunak, who has a chance of picking up the keys to Downing Street as early as today. The former prime minister had the public backing of 59 Tory MPs – far short of the 100 required to

Liz Truss’s “disastrous premiership” means British families are spending an extra £530 a month on their mortgage than they were a year ago, Labour has claimed. The Opposition claims the effects of higher interest rates will be felt by tens of thousands of households for years to come. Labour’s analysis is based on the current

Early morning in south Manchester – and a prolific burglar known to police is arrested for a spate of thefts. Officers from Greater Manchester Police were granted a warrant to enter and search the home of the man, who is believed to have stolen items from student accommodation. Enough evidence was seized and examined to

Boris Johnson has more than 100 backers and, therefore, could be on the leadership ballot, a source has told Sky News. The news comes as speculation mounts that the former prime minister will enter the Tory leadership race. Mr Johnson has been on holiday in the Dominican Republic but flew home after Liz Truss’s dramatic

The second Tory leadership race in just three months is underway following the extraordinary resignation of Liz Truss. The now-outgoing PM was forced from office after just 44 days following a seismic few weeks in Westminster that saw her tax-slashing mini-budget crash and burn. Ms Truss’s resignation, signalling the end of the shortest term by

A cabinet minister has told Sky News they believe Boris Johnson could secure the 100 nominations he needs from Conservative MPs to progress in the Tory leadership race if he were to stand. Jacob Rees-Mogg became the first cabinet minister to publicly declare his backing for the former prime minister this morning, posting on social

Liz Truss has resigned as prime minister just 44 days after taking over from Boris Johnson. She will be the shortest-serving prime minister in modern British political history. A new leader is set to be elected next Friday. In a statement read outside Downing Street, Ms Truss said: “I came into office at a time

Liz Truss’s premiership is hanging by a thread after an extraordinary day in Westminster that saw a cabinet minister resign and a Commons motion descend into chaos with allegations of “manhandling and bullying”. The unprecedented events have led to some Tory MPs declaring the Conservative party is “finished”, with one hitting out at the “talentless

At least 45 baby deaths could have been avoided at two Kent hospitals, a report into maternity services at an NHS trust has found. Dr Bill Kirkup, chair of the independent inquiry into maternity at East Kent Hospitals University NHS Foundation Trust said his panel had heard “harrowing” accounts from families receiving “suboptimal” care. He

The NHS is setting up data-driven “war rooms” as it prepares for what could be England’s “toughest winter on record”, new plans have revealed. Under the government’s winter preparation plan, which aims to help the NHS cope during the colder months, the 24/7 “care traffic control centres” are expected to be created in every local

The majority of Conservative Party members want Liz Truss to resign now – just six weeks after voting her in – and their preferred replacement is Boris Johnson, a new poll has found. A YouGov poll of Tory members found 55% would now vote for Rishi Sunak, who lost out to Ms Truss, if they

China has recruited dozens of former British military pilots to teach the Chinese armed forces how to defeat western warplanes and helicopters in a “threat to UK interests”, officials have revealed. One official said some 30 mainly ex-fast jet but also some helicopter pilots – lured by annual salaries of around £240,000 – are currently

Jeremy Hunt has revealed he is reversing “almost all” of the tax cuts announced in his predecessor’s mini-budget and is scaling back support for energy bills. In an emergency statement, the chancellor said a 1p cut to income tax will be delayed “indefinitely” until the UK’s finances improve instead of being introduced in April 2023

Labour has called for Liz Truss to face parliament today after three Tory MPs broke ranks to demand that she quits. The prime minister is facing calls to resign from within her own party just six weeks after entering Number 10, following the economic turmoil in the wake of the mini-budget. Tory MPs Crispin Blunt,

Just Stop Oil protesters have blocked London’s Park Lane and spray painted the front of a luxury car showroom. Demonstrators from the environmental group, who are calling for the government to halt all new oil and gas licences, glued themselves to the road in central London at around 11am on Sunday. One was then filmed

Jeremy Hunt has admitted the government went “too far, too fast” and that he will have to take some “very difficult decisions” on spending and tax to get the economy back up and running. Earlier, the new chancellor admitted there “were mistakes” in Liz Truss and Kwasi Kwarteng’s mini-budget in an interview with Sky News.

The new chancellor Jeremy Hunt has said there “were mistakes” in Liz Truss and Kwasi Kwarteng’s mini-budget. Speaking to Sky News on Saturday, Mr Hunt said: “It was a mistake when we were going to be asking for difficult decisions across the board on tax and spending to cut the rate of tax paid by

Liz Truss has said “I want to be honest, this is difficult” after sacking her chancellor and reversing key policies of her government’s growth plan. In a news conference shortly after dismissing Kwasi Kwarteng, Ms Truss said: “The way we deliver our mission has to change.” But she said the “mission remains” to deliver a

Kwasi Kwarteng will return to the UK from Washington earlier than planned, as another major mini-budget U-turn is expected. The chancellor was due to brief journalists on Friday morning after attending the International Monetary Fund’s annual meeting in Washington, but held the briefing on Thursday night before announcing he will fly home. On his return,

Kwasi Kwarteng has been sacked as chancellor three weeks after his mini-budget unleashed chaos in the economy. He was appointed to the role by Liz Truss only 38 days ago, making him the second-shortest serving chancellor after Iain Macleod, who died a month after being handed the job by Edward Heath. Mr Kwarteng’s downfall was

A neonatal nurse accused of murdering seven babies allegedly left a handwritten note confessing to her crimes that read “I AM EVIL I DID THIS”. Lucy Letby, 32, is alleged to have gone on a year-long killing spree while working at the Countess of Chester Hospital. She is also accused of the attempted murder of

A neonatal nurse killed two out of three triplet boys and smiled after killing another premature baby girl on the fourth attempt, a court has heard. Lucy Letby is charged with 22 counts of murder and attempted murder, involving 17 babies, and is alleged to have gone on a year-long killing spree at the Countess

The Bank of England has confirmed its emergency bond-buying programme will end on Friday as planned after reports suggested it might extend the support for pension funds. On Wednesday morning, it said all temporary and targeted purchases of UK government bonds, known as gilts, will end. This has been the position throughout and has been

The coronation of King Charles III will take place next year on Saturday 6 May, Buckingham Palace has confirmed. The religious ceremony will be held at London’s Westminster Abbey, and conducted by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby. The King will be crowned alongside his wife, Camilla, the Queen Consort. It is thought the coronation

A hospital nurse murdered a five-day-old baby by injecting air into his stomach through a nose tube, a court has heard. Lucy Letby allegedly killed the baby boy, child C, just six days after murdering for the first time, when she killed another baby boy, child A, and days later attacked child B, while working

A hospital nurse accused of the murder of seven babies – and attempted murder of 10 more – was a “poisoner at work”, a jury has heard. Lucy Letby, who had specialist training in care for the sickest babies at the neonatal unit in the Countess of Chester, is alleged to have gone on a

The mother of murdered student Libby Squire has revealed that the “sexual predator” who raped and killed the 21-year-old has agreed to meet her.  Lisa Squire told Sky News she is determined to find out what exactly happened to her daughter after she was abducted by Pawel Relowicz – and hopes to get answers by

Liz Truss is expected to make a decision on whether to uprate benefits in line with inflation in November, a department for work and pensions minister has said. Victoria Prentis told Sky News that “no decision has been taken about the uprating of benefits” but that she is sure that the government will “make that

Power blackouts this winter are “extremely unlikely” this winter, Cabinet Office Minister Nadhim Zahawi has told Sky News. The Tory frontbencher also insisted there was no need for the government to spend £14m on an energy-saving public information campaign, given the advice already available. Mr Zahawi’s comments come amid concerns of power cuts with the