♪ ♪ narrator: funding for this presentation of this progr is provided by... narrator: cfo. caregiver. eclipse aser. a raymond james financial advisor tailors advice to help you live your life. life well planned. narrator: funding was also provided by, the freeman foundation. by judy and peter blum kovler foundation; pursuing solutions for america's neglected needs.

and by contributions to this pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. announcer: and now, "bbc world news".

told mp's defiantly she's

not a quiter. and announced that she had spoken to the king and was resigning. by next friday, it could be a serious monday. our political editor chris mason begins the coverage. >> lunchtime at downing street and the elector is back. since she became prime minister, she was back. this>> i came into office at a e of great economic and international instability. families and businesses were worried about how to pay their bills. putin's illegal war in ukraine

threatened the security of our whole continent. our countries have been held back for too long by low economic growth. i was elected by the conservative party with the mandate to change this. we delivered on energy bills and on cutting national insurance. we set out a vision for a low tax high-grade economy that would take advantage of the freedoms of brexit. i recognize that given the situation, i cannot deliver the mandate on which i was elected by the conservative party. i have therefore spoken to his majesty the king to notify him that i am resigning as leader of the conservative party. >> so what on earth happens now? >> this morning i met the chairman othe 1922 committee and we agreed that there will be a leadership election to be

completed within the next week. this will ensure that remain on a path to deliver our fiscal plans and maintain our country's economic stability and national security. i will remain as prime minister until a successor has been chosen. thank you. >> what an extraordinary moment three point five months since boris johnson stood at that lectern and resigned himself. now his successor has done just the same. the chaos deepened. enter than this man, sir graeme brady who the prime minister mentioned who will oversee the race to replace liz truss. what he got to say? >> i have spoken to the party chair and he says it will be possible to conduct a ballot and

conclude leadership election by friday the 28 of october. >> it is certainly not a circumstance which we like to see. >> the conservative rivals say it is time for a general election. >> what do you make of it? >> we are burning through prime ministers, chancellors, and secretaries. and that gives an element of soap opera. but it isn't just a soap opera. for many people who are facing higher prices, this is real damage being inflicted. i really don't think another revolving door of chaos and another experiment at the top of the tory party is the wayut of this. >> there must be a general election. it is a democratic necessity. the idea that the tories can unite behind a prime minister

now, any prime minister, let alone one in the public interest is for the birds. >> not fit to govern our country. we don't need another conservative prime minister. they need to go. we need another general election and conservative mps won't do their patriotic duty and vote for that? >> the era is liz truss is far too short. this is her arriving as prime minister last month. in short, nearly her entire program for governme imploded on contact with reality. >> we are at the beginning of a new era. that's right. >> many budget, max disaster. the markets tanked, so did her

poll ratings, and the mp's lost faith almost instantly. the other night i asked her, will you lead is the next general election? >> i will lead the conservatives into the next general election. >> definitely? >> yeah. >> i am a fighter. >> turns out she's done with fighting and she has quit. so who will take over? you might remember this guy. see you later. some conservatives would love it, others hate it. as our cabinet ministers. and the woman who resigned as home secretary yesterday.

the answer is no. the new chancellor has ruled himself out. in the last few minutes, sir graham brady had more to say about how the race willork. >> nominations are open and we will close at 2:00 on monday. they are expected to have at least 100 colleagues nominated. >> and if the party should decide to put forward to candidates, there will be an expedited online vote of conservative party members. all stages of the leadership election shall be concluded bite no later than friday, the 28 of october. >> who might find themselves moving in here a week from tomorrow?

prized it still is. and tonight, the race is underway. >> let's get the thoughts of the conservative mp who joins us in kent. good to have you with us. you were one of boris johnson pasta tractors. in looking at a running tally, roughly 20% of the party has castheir vote for who they would be supporting. boris johnson has 38 votes, ritchie's neck 27. what would you say to your fellow members who are backing boris johnson for a return tonight? >> mr. johnson is under investigation for misleading the house of commons. effectively by not telling the

house of commons the truth. that is a very serious offense and i cannot see any return for government for mr. johnson, not just in any prime minister but in any shape or form while the investigation is continuing into a very serious matter. that is why he was removed by his parliamentary colleagues. >> let's suppose that there is a world where boris johnson comes back as prime minister and that committee hearing is continuing. what are the implications of it? >> we are looking for a unity candidate and not a divisive candidate. the conservative party has to rally around whichever of the significant contenders is finally selected not later than next friday in order to enable the chancellor who is not

standing for the leadership to present his fiscal statement supported, we hope and trust but the office of budget responsibility. that is the way we shall take not just the party, but the country out of the slightly unfortunate circumstances we find ourselves in. if mr. johnson was injected into that equation, there would be a significant number of conservative members of parliament, and i am most certainly one of them. of finding ourselves in a position to resign. we need unity, not division. >> there are some tonight that say that they would call a by election? >> my concern from the start of

all of this has been the people that i represent and my country, not the conservative party. we are facing a situation where people are very frightened because of the increase in mortgage rates. small businesses repaying loans incurred during the pandemic. interest rates rise we are in the middle of a war in ukraine that we are giving support to. and there is the small matter of whether fuel prices and a cost-of-living increase. we have very serious constituency issues and national issues that we have to face up to. we need a strong leader, a chairman of the board, if you

like, to allow jeremy hunt has the chief executive to do the economic job he is doing extremely well. >> there was clearly great despond and the party -- despondency in the party about the vote and i'm sure you share with the mps what went on. as you take the temperature of the party today, is there a unity candidate that can bring the party, the two sides of the party together? >> charles walker is a dear friend. i like to be rather more cheerful than that. i think there is a very significant way out of this mess we have to get behind whoever the party chooses and we have to do it in a grown-up way without being a primaonna and it is

ritchie's neck -- ritchie soon at -- sunak. or ben wallace. but whichever one of those emerges, we have to throw our weight behind and support wholeheartedly. it's the time for teamwork. >> just a very quick one before i let you go. you talk about ben wallace and it's an extraordinary state of affairs that the defense is in washington about a very serious threat in europe, thatould involve nuclear weapons. the prime minister is resigning in the party is an uproar. and the reputation of the united kingdom is quite frankly being dragged through the mud.

>> i think it is a significant indicator that the government of the united kingdom's democratic and continues under all circumstances. i don't wish to be misunderstood, but the queen is dead, long live the king. the government has to continue. ben wallace is doing his job fighng a war in the interest of the united kingdom. jeremy hunt is doing his job as the chief executive relation if you like, taking the nation's finances to a better place. the work goes on in the house of commons is sitting all day today discussing very serious business. all of that work continues, irrespective of who happens to

be sittingn downing street. >> thank you for being with us. here with me is our political correspondent and watson. -- ian watson. the implications of boris johnson returning clearly would mean that some of them like sir roger would state his independence. >> he made it very clear he would resign the conservative with. -- conservative whip. and as you put it, some people are saying they would go further and cause even more havoc by holding elections with the so -- with the party so far behind in opinion polls. whether it is straight as a backbone or cowering in the corner remains to be seen. a range of people are starting to get a bandwagon going and are

coming out publicly either on social media or in the mainstream media calling for boris johnson's return. the idea that this would bring unity is probably far-fetched. >> i can hear him going here goes the bbc again plunging the knife into boris johnson before he's even entered the race. he is a divisive figure within the party and that is indisputable. he is a divisive figure in the country and the polling tells us that. in that context, is he the right candidate for the conservative party? >> he would be regarded more favorably as liz truss is about to depart. at least narrowing the polls, tightening the polls a bit. it's not such a far-fetched idea

that would have been when he walked out. as sir roger mentioned, this committee looking into whether he misled parliament more significant because sir roger has been a long-standing critic. and he was wary about bringing boris johnson back. he thought most colleagues wouldn't go for it because the committee hearings and what would happen if they had to get rid of boris johnson a second time. they thought than they simply couldn't resist. these are all things that the conservative party members on the leadership candidates and potential backers. >> thank you very much. what we have learned over the last few weeks is that the markets are back in control. and obviously did for liz truss's budget.

a market commentator providing primary and secondary markets for equity and debt products. how did markets react today to liz truss's resignation? >> i think initially ok. the most important thing is to watch the bond markets and how it actually performs and it performed really quite well. i would like to suggest it's about three months since boris johnson left. people express their displeasure whether it was joe biden and other people with the office of budget responsibity being nowhere near that budget. we saw those rise from 1% at the

beginning of this year to 6.5% about 10 days ago. that is catastrophic considering interest rates are only 2.25 percent right now. the average of about 4%, somewhere between two years and 10 years. that is the cost of funding, the whole of the government debt. we need a bit of stability. it is incredibly important. the conservative party has never been more split than it has at the moment. whoever takes over in a weeks time has has a run at it make

sure that the damage of the credibility fr a business perspective, we lost a lot of investors over the course of the last three months. people don't have the confidence in this country than they had three or four months ago. this is easily restorable when we have stability and that is very important. >> whoever it is comes through the store next, whether it is the instability we have seen or because markets are watching soap sleep that jeremy hunt is pretty bond at the moment. that they like the direction of travel from the new chancellor at least for the moment. >> it is an inspired move. a good pair of hands. safe. understands it.

whoever has got to be prime minister needs a good relationship with jeremy hunt. if jeremy hunt were to be removed, the markets would see that is a very adverse move. a bit parochial and domesti, the overseas market and what the united states thinks, what europe and japan thanks. we are a highly respected country. our wheels have fallen off. we have a government of all the great cultures, not just breg sitters, levs -- brexiters, leavers,ut we have to pull very hard as long as this administration last. >> conservative party members

may be involved again. we shall know by next friday. what will they me of liz truss's premiership? we have been finding out. >> shopping for a new leader. it and this traditionally safe conservative seat, party members and voters have been watching recent defense with consternation. simon robinson is the leader of russia cliff counsel in nottingham shire. how do you feel as leader of local counsel? >> disappointed, surprised. i've never seen anything like it. it has happened so quickly. not just the prime minister level, but other ministers resigning as well. it has been chaotic and very challenging. >> what is absolutely key is experience.

he was a good move and he was chancellor. >> a true be conservative constituency. the local mp here for 50 years, and there was a conservative club just around the corner. but the recent events appear to have damaged at least some of the support around here. you have been a conservative party member. >> in the past, yes. but i would not now because i feel like you can't trust them. the whole fiasco with boris and followed by the fiasco with liz truss, i can't support them anymore. i feel like we need a change. >> i am put off by what is going on. >> you will put off voting for them in the next general election whenever that might be. as thoughts turn to the next prime minister, one familiar name kept returning. >> bring back boris.

he did a good job on brexit. i think somebody over there agrees with me. >> personally i would bring back boris. >> we hear he might be throwi his hat into the ring. >> he was an excellent leader, made mistakes, admitted to it. apologize. he got us through covid and he has the presence that liz hasn't got. >> some haven't even had chance to catch up on today's news. >> she will survive. >> you know she has resigned. >> i did not know that. >> she resigned earlier this afternoon. >> that surprises me. i'd have told her to stay. >> and anybody standing in the raisman have the support of 100 members of parliament by monday. it is likely that we could have

two left by the end of play on monday and that will go to the members. narrator: funding for this presentation of this program is provided by... narrator: financial services firm, raymond james. narrator: funding was also provided by, the freeman foundation. by judy and peter blum kovler foundation; pursuing solutions for america's neglected needs. and by contributions to this pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. ♪ ♪ narrator: you're watching pbs. ♪ da-da-da-duh-da-da-da♪ ♪ da-da-da-da-da-da ♪♪

♪ ♪ narrator: funding for this presentation of this program is proded by... narrator: cfo. caregiver. eclipse chaser. a raymond james financial advisor tailors advice to help you live your life. life well planned. narrator: funding was also provided by, the freeman foundation. by judy and peter blum kovler foundation; pursuing solutions for america's neglected needs.