British politics collapsed into further chaos on Thursday as Liz Truss announced she was resigning as Tory leader.
Truss lasted just 44 days in office, making her the shortest serving prime minister in history.
The government’s death spiral means there must be another leadership contest to select the next Tory party leader and prime minister.
Just minutes after her resignation, chairman of the backbench 1922 Committee Sir Graham Brady announced the party would hold a contest to replace her within a week.
It follows complaints that the two month contest to replace Boris Johnson over the summer paralysed government for too long.
The precise details of how the election will work are unclear, however Brady revealed some details of how he expects it will work.
Truss’s replacement will become their third leader in just two months.
This What We Know So Far:
Brady said the process could be concluded by Friday October 28.
The hope is that a new prime minister would be in place in time for an important financial statement on October 31.
That crucial statement – on the following Monday – is intended to reassure the City that the government has a plan to repair the nation’s finances.
Brady told reporters: “I have spoken to the party chairman Jake Berry and he has confirmed that it will be possible to conduct a ballot and conclude a leadership election by Friday the 28th of October.
“So we should have a new leader in place before the fiscal statement which will take place on the 31st.”
Asked if the party faithful will be included in the process, he told reporters: “Well, that is the expectation.”
However, he added: “I think we’re deeply conscious of the imperative in the national interest of resolving this clearly and quickly.”
How Many Candidates?
Brady was vague about whether one or two candidates would be likely to run for the leadership.
He added: “The party rules say there will be two candidates unless there is only one candidate.”
Asked what happens if one candidate drops out, Brady said: “If there is only one candidate, there is only one candidate.”
Pressed on whose idea it was to truncate the process into one week, he said: “I think it’s a matter on which there is a pretty broad consensus”.
Brady added: “It certainly is not the circumstances I would wish to see.”
More details are set to be outlined soon. Behind the scenes, Tory MPs have already started the horse trading ahead of the election.
For a run-through of who might throw their hat in the ring, follow our list of runners and riders.
