Sir Keir Starmer has called for an immediate general election, saying the country 'cannot have another experiment at the top of the Tory party' after Liz Truss resigned as prime minister.
Ms Truss stood down after 45 days in office, admitting she could not deliver the mandate on which she was elected. A successor is expected to be announced by 28 October, triggering the second Conservative leadership contest of the year. The Liberal Democrats, SNP, Plaid Cymru and the Green Party have also demanded a general election.
Scotland's first minister described the situation as 'an almighty mess', adding that the UK needed a democratic choice over its next prime minister. Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey said Conservative MPs should 'do their patriotic duty' and give the people a say, arguing that no candidate could provide stability because the party was 'so divided'.
The next general election is not due until at least 2024, following the Conservatives' 2019 landslide. Ms Truss was elected by party members in September but lost authority after a series of U-turns, and will become the shortest-serving prime minister in British history.
Pollster Professor Sir John Curtice warned that governments presiding over a fiscal crisis usually struggle at the ballot box, while an Opinium poll projected a 1997-style Labour landslide with 411 seats, reducing the Tories to 137 MPs.
Sir Keir said the turmoil was damaging the country's reputation and insisted Labour was ready, with a manifesto prepared and teams on an election footing. At the TUC conference, he outlined plans including a publicly-owned renewable energy firm, carbon-free electricity by 2030 and insulating 19 million homes.
