UK

The winner of the Conservative leadership contest will be unveiled on 5 September – and some candidates could be knocked out of the race today. Eleven Tory hopefuls have thrown their hat into the ring, but those who fail to get support from 20 MPs will not appear on the first ballot, which is due

Flights from Gatwick are more likely to have been cancelled so far this year than at any other major UK airport. The rate is 10 times worse than Stansted, the best-performing British hub. More than 3% of planned flights from Gatwick didn’t take place, compared with 0.3% of those from Stansted, according to figures from

A rare “extreme heat” warning has been issued for the weekend as the Met Office said temperatures were likely to rise further in the coming days. The start of the working week for millions of Britons was a roasting one, with mercury readings shooting up as high as 32C in Northolt, west London. Temperatures failed

Foreign Secretary Liz Truss has officially joined the race for the Tory leadership, with Home Secretary Priti Patel potentially set to announce her candidacy. A surprise entry has also been made by Foreign Office minister Rehman Chishti, meaning 11 Conservatives are now fighting to replace Boris Johnson as prime minister. Writing in the Telegraph newspaper,

Nadhim Zahawi has said he is “clearly being smeared” after questions were reportedly raised about his personal finances before his appointment as chancellor. The former education secretary and vaccines minister, who is vying to take over from Boris Johnson, told Sky News he had “always” paid his taxes and had “declared” them in the UK.

Four more Conservative MPs have joined the Tory leadership race, widening the field to eight. Nadhim Zahawi, the newly appointed chancellor, Grant Shapps, the transport secretary, and the ex-health secretaries Jeremy Hunt and Sajid Javid all announced their bids on Saturday. Earlier in the day Ben Wallace, who was the bookies’ favourite to succeed Mr

The UK has started turning the first of around 10,000 Ukrainian recruits into frontline soldiers at four bases across England, safe from Russian missile fire, it can be revealed. The new troops, operating in groups of about 200, have been arriving from Ukraine daily to join a specially-condensed training programme offered by British soldiers. They

The first candidates have entered the contest to replace Boris Johnson with more hopefuls expected to throw their hats into the ring over the weekend. Last night, Rishi Sunak announced his bid on social media, promising to “restore trust, rebuild the economy and reunite the country”. The former chancellor, who spectacularly resigned on Tuesday evening

Rishi Sunak has announced he is standing to be the next prime minister after Boris Johnson’s resignation yesterday. Announcing his bid, Mr Sunak said the country faces “huge challenges”. “Let’s restore trust, rebuild the economy and reunite the country,” he posted on social media. The former chancellor resigned from his ministerial post on Tuesday evening,

Replacing Boris Johnson as prime minister needs to be done “properly and professionally, but quickly”, Education Secretary James Cleverly has told Sky News. But the cabinet minister ruled himself out as a candidate to become prime minister after Mr Johnson’s resignation effectively fired the starting gun on the Conservative Party leadership race. He also disagreed

Boris Johnson has announced his resignation as prime minister after less than three years in Number 10, saying: “No one in politics is remotely indispensable.” Speaking from Downing Street, he thanked the millions of people who voted Conservative at the last election, and said the reason he fought so long to remain in office was

Brandon Lewis has resigned as Northern Ireland secretary following Boris Johnson’s refusal to stand down, despite calls from some of his own cabinet ministers to do so. He tweeted this morning: “A decent and responsible government relies on honesty, integrity and mutual respect – it is a matter of profound personal regret that I must

Cabinet ministers – including the new chancellor Nadhim Zahawi – have sent the chief whip to Number 10 to tell Boris Johnson to resign, Sky News understands. The delegation of senior politicians, which also includes Transport Secretary Grant Shapps and Welsh Secretary Simon Hart, have told Chris Heaton-Harris than the PM’s position is untenable and

New Chancellor Nadhim Zahawi says it is “easy to walk away, but it is much tougher to deliver for the country” as he replaces Rishi Sunak in the Treasury. Speaking to Sky News’ Kay Burley on his first full day in the job, he said he backed Boris Johnson and that “the team in government

Chancellor Rishi Sunak and health secretary Sajid Javid have resigned from Boris Johnson’s government. The chancellor, who quit moments after Mr Javid, said: “The public rightly expect government to be conducted properly, competently and seriously. I recognise this may be my last ministerial job, but I believe these standards are worth fighting for and that

A Premier League footballer has been arrested on suspicion of rape. The footballer, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was arrested in north London. The Metropolitan Police confirmed an allegation of rape of a woman in her 20s was reported to police. The force said the alleged rape reportedly happened in June 2022. In

One person has died after an “inferno” at a block of flats in Bedford following a suspected gas explosion. Authorities fear more people may have lost their lives in the blaze on Redwood Grove. Earlier it was announced three people, including a firefighter, had been injured. Two of them suffered smoke inhalation and were taken

Motorists could face “serious disruption throughout the day,” police have warned, as protesters are expected to target motorways in a demonstration over high fuel prices. Roads across the country could see traffic jams as protesters call for a cut in fuel duty. They will target mostly three-lane motorways and result in slow-downs on two lanes,

Boris John made the “choice he thought was best” in appointing Chris Pincher to government and was “not aware of specific claims” about the Tory MP, a cabinet minister has insisted. Speaking to Sky News’ Sophy Ridge On Sunday programme, Work and Pensions Secretary Therese Coffey also rejected the idea there was a “problem with

Security tests for new airport workers are being completed in record time, ministers claim, despite travel disruption continuing to dog holiday plans. The time taken to vet new employees has been raised as one of the reasons for shortages in airport staff, contributing to thousands of flight cancellations, delays and missing luggage. Airports across the