Sunak is next PM as Mordaunt drops out of Tory leadership race
Sunak is next PM as Mordaunt drops out of Tory leadership race

Sunak is next UK PM as Mordaunt drops out of Tory leadership race

Rishi Sunak will be the UK's next prime minister after Penny Mordaunt dropped out of the Tory leadership race in the final minutes before nominations closed on today.

Sunak will succeed Liz Truss seven weeks after she defeated him in the previous Tory contest.

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The ex-chancellor gained the support of well over half of Tory MPs, with Mordaunt struggling to reach the threshold of 100 MPs to get on the ballot.

He will become the UK's first British Asian PM and at 42, the youngest in more than a century.

Labour have reiterated their call for a general election, as have the Scottish National Party and the Liberal Democrats.

Mordaunt withdrawal statement, in full

Here is Penny Mordaunt's full statement:

"Our Party is our membership. Whether we are elected representatives, activists, fundraisers or supporters. We all have a stake in who our leader is.

"These are unprecedented times. Despite the compressed timetable for the leadership contest it is clear that colleagues feel we need certainty today. They have taken this decision in good faith for the good of the country.

"Members should know that this proposition has been fairly and thoroughly tested by the agreed 1922 process.

"As a result, we have now chosen our next Prime Minister. This decision is an historic one and shows, once again, the diversity and talent of our party. Rishi has my full support.

"I am proud of the campaign we ran and grateful to all those, across all sides of our party, who gave me their backing. We all owe it to the country, to each other and to Rishi to unite and work together for the good of the nation. There is much work to be done."

more to follow…

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