Sunak to be next Prime Minister

Rishi Sunak will become fifth Conservative Prime Minister in just six years, after Penny Mordaunt, her rival, withdrew moments before the deadline to collect enough nominations for the party to proceed to a vote.

Sir Graham Brady, the chair of 1922 Committee, confirmed shortly thereafter that there had been one valid nomination submitted by the 2pm deadline.

In a statement released at 1.58pm, Mordaunt said: “These are unprecedented times. Despite the tight time frame for the leadership contest, it is clear that colleagues feel the need for certainty today. They have taken this decision in good faith for the good of the country.”

Yesterday night, former Prime Minister Boris Johnson pulled out of the race. He had never publicly entered the race, despite claiming that he had enough support to reach the threshold of 100 nominations from Conservative MPs.

Sunak will take the Number 10 position seven weeks after Liz Truss lost the leadership contest. The economic and political climates are much more uncertain than they were during the summer.

His resignation as Chancellor in July was a key moment in the collapse of Johnson’s Government, but it was also seen as a factor in his failure to secure the support of Conservative Party members in the leadership election won by Liz Truss.

Truss resigned only 45 days after Number 10 was published. She will be the longest-serving Prime Minister in British History when she officially leaves office.

Sunak will set some records by becoming the first British Asian Prime minister, the first to represent Yorkshire constituencies, and the youngest Prime Minster in over 200 years.

He has only two years before a general elections must be called. He inherits a lot of problems, including the ongoing impact of Brexit and leading a divided party.

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt, who is expected to stay at Number 11, is scheduled to deliver a major financial statement next Monday as part of the attempts to repair the damage caused by Kwasi Kwarteng’s mini-Budget.

Sunak has been very quiet in the weeks since Liz Truss was elected Prime Minister. He also avoided last month’s Conservative Party Conference. He has only tweeted twice in six weeks – to confirm he was standing to become leader again and to acknowledge the announcement by Johnson last night that he was ending his leadership bid.

His Cabinet appointments are expected to attempt to unite the party and should see a number of changes from Truss’s short-lived line-up.

Business Secretary Jacob Rees-Mogg has already confirmed he won’t serve in a Sunak Cabinet, which means there will be a seventh Business Secretary in seven years.