What happens if Liz Truss resigns today?
Prime Minister Liz Truss has had the worst start to her premiership than any other PM. And the last 48 hours in Westminster have been chaos.
There are rumours that the Liz Truss era is fast approaching its end, and many are plotting to oust her from No 10.
She has only been in the job since September 5.
In that time, the Queen died, Liz Truss crashed the economy, her mini-budget has been ripped up and replaced with policies that she campaigned against during the leadership race, she fired her chancellor and replaced him with a Rishi Sunak supporter, her home secretary resigned and offered up a scathing letter and there were reports of bullying from her cabinet at last night’s Commons vote.
Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng was fired after the mini-budget spooked the financial markets. Many argue that Truss should have gone with him as it was her financial vision as his.
READ – PM in crisis: Suella Braverman quits and voting chaos
How does a Tory leadership election work?
According to the 1922 Committee, an incumbent Tory PM cannot face a confidence vote within their first year on the job. But there is speculation that this rule could be changed.
After that 12-month period, to trigger a contest vote, 15 per cent of Tory MPs would have to submit letters of no confidence to 1922 Committee chair, Sir Graham Brady. If at least 50 per cent of MPs then vote no-confidence in their leader, a leadership election begins.
Tory MPs who want to be in the race for the top job will then seek nominations from their colleagues. There will be a series of ballots which will see all the candidates whittled down to just two. The rank and file of the Conservative party will then choose the winner.
Boris Johnson won the general election in 2019 and although he was ousted and replaced with Truss there is no requirement for the Conservative party to call a general election.
Some MPs are understood to want to avoid putting the vote back to the ordinary members of the party. The Telegraph says some MPs want the parliamentary party to choose Truss’s successor, though others warn that this would require a complicated rule change.
This aligns with newspaper reports that say the Tories want to put Rishi Sunak and Penny Mordaunt in office on a “golden ticket” type deal.
READ – Can Liz Truss save her job?
What happens if Liz Truss resigns today?
If Liz Truss resigns as Conservative leader and Prime Minister today, a leadership contest would begin.
Those wanting to get into No 10 would begin trying to get support for their campaign.
However, it is possible that the Tory parliamentary party could rally around a single candidate for the leadership. This would perhaps be seen as a better option as it will avoid time-wasting.
If Truss does not resign and attempts to cling on to power against the will of MPs and peers, the 1922 Committee could and would likely change the rules to allow an early challenge to her (changing the 12-month rule). This would likely see her removal from both leadership of the party and as prime minister.
Can we have a general election?
Labour and Liberal Democrats are amongst those calling for an early general election. But the government is not legally obliged to hold another general election before January 2025 – surely to the delight of Conservatives as the latest opinion polls suggest the Tories would lose most of their seats.
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Cliff Notes – Big Brother star Henry Southan forced to miss major event after hospitalisation
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Henry Southan, a finalist from Big Brother 2023, shared a hospital selfie with followers, expressing disappointment over missing the premiere of Slow Horses due to health issues.
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The 27-year-old food critic has not provided further updates since his initial post, leaving fans concerned about his condition.
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Southan recently ended a 17-month relationship with fellow contestant Jordan Sangha, which surprised many fans, especially as they were collaborating on projects together at the time.
Big Brother star Henry Southan forced to miss major event after hospitalisation
Big Brother’s Henry Southan shares snap from hospital bed with followers (Picture: Getty / iamhenrysouthan/Instagram)Big Brother star Henry Southan posted from a hospital bed as he told fans he was ‘gutted’ to be missing Slow Horses premiere.
The reality star, 27, shared a selfie of himself hooked up to an IV drip earlier on Wednesday to his 193k followers.
He went with the caption: ‘Hasn’t been the most ideal 24 hours!
‘Getting much-needed rest – gutted to be missing the Slow Horses premiere tonight, but rest comes first.’ The food critic hasn’t returned to social media after sharing the post, nor further details about what happened.
The Big Brother finalist ultimately finished in third place on the 2023 series.
He broke up with his boyfriend Jordan Sangha earlier this year after 17 months together. The pair first met on the ITV show and cultivated a large fanbase of people who loved the couple.
He hasn’t updated fans since his initial post (Picture: instagram/iamhenrysouthan)‘After a lot of thought, Jordan and I have decided to go our separate ways. It’s incredibly sad, and we’re both hurting, but we know it’s the right step.
‘We’re so grateful for the love and support you’ve shown us – thank you. Please give us some space as we figure things out privately.’
Jordan, who won the season, added: ‘After many happy times, memories, and precious experiences, Henry and I have parted ways.
‘I want to thank everyone who has supported us. We will always remain close friends. Cheers x’
The split came as a shock to fans, with the duo working on several projects together at the time that they parted ways in April, including a podcast, Club Sandwich, which ended at the same time.
Last week, Jordan took to Instagram in a rare comment addressing the ongoing speculation over their breakup.
Earlier this year Henry and his ex-boyfriend Jordan Sangha split after first meeting on the ITV reality series (Picture: Alan Chapman/Dave Benett/Getty Images for The Good Food Guide)He wrote: ‘I am tired of being blamed for the breakup. I know what happened and I continue to know what’s happening. That’s all,’ he said per The Mirror.
Big Brother is set to return imminently, with co-hosts AJ Odudu and Will Best welcoming a new cohort of contestants under one roof at the end of September.
The launch of ITV’s third season of the reboot comes alongside several other reality shows, such as The Traitors and Strictly Come Dancing, making it a jampacked autumn.
Big Brother is set to return later this month (Picture: ITV)It’s rumoured that, following the success of live introductions for the celebrity version, they’ll be sticking with this format for the normal season.
A source told The Sun: ‘ITV brought back the live element for the celebrity version last autumn … it did bring back the important sense that anything could happen, and it would all be caught on camera.’
‘That’s even more exciting given the fact that this is not the celebrity version, so we really have no idea what kind of characters are going to emerge from the limousines and go into the house.’
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