Live: Liz Truss sacks Kwasi Kwarteng as Chancellor

Kwasi Kwarteng accepted Prime Minister Liz Truss’s request he “stand aside” as Chancellor on Friday.

He flew back early from International Monetary Fund talks in Washington to be informed of his fate in a brief meeting with the Prime Minister.

Former foreign secretary and Conservative leadership contender Jeremy Hunt has been named as the new Chancellor.

Ms Truss staged a press conference in Downing Street on Friday afternoon in which she announced major changes to Mr Kwarteng’s £43 billion tax giveaway including reversing her policy to scrap the planned rise in corporation tax from 19% to 25%.

Later, Mr Hunt met Liz Truss at Downing Street and the Treasury confirmed that the Government’s fiscal plan will still be delivered on October 31.

Here is a timeline of the day’s key events:

PA’s live blog has now concluded.

5.33pm

Tory MP and Truss loyalist Chris Loder said he was “disappointed” at the Prime Minister’s U-turn.

Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s PM programme, he said he was still a supporter of Liz Truss but admitted it had been a “difficult few days”.

He said: “We’ll see now, won’t we, over the coming days as to what that looks like.

“I do hope that the Prime Minister can continue. But I get the feeling from the parliamentary party and a number of her supporters that is actually quite difficult at the moment.”

5.14pm

The Treasury confirmed that the Government’s fiscal plan will still be delivered on October 31.

“Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt will set out the government’s Medium-Term Fiscal Plan on 31 October, alongside a full forecast from the independent Office for Budget Responsibility,” according to a statement issued by the Treasury.

5.02pm

Jeremy Hunt has left Downing Street via the front door after meeting with Prime Minister Liz Truss.

The newly appointed Chancellor remained deadpan and silent as reporters called out questions.

He walked straight across the road through the gates towards the Foreign Office as Extinction Rebellion protesters continued to block the main Downing Street gates.

The leader of the Liberal Democrats has called for a general election following the appointment of Jeremy Hunt as the new Chancellor.

Speaking about Liz Truss’s five weeks in office, Sir Ed Davey told Sky News: “She has trashed the British economy, she’s put hundreds of pounds on people’s mortgages and she’s humiliated the Conservative government in the eyes of the world. People are angry, they’re fed up, and they’re worried about the future.

“Above all, they’re furious with the Conservative Party. That’s why it’s time they have their say, people have their say, that’s why it is time for a general election.”

4.24pm

The Liberal Democrats have called for Parliament to sit on Saturday, amid the turmoil in Liz Truss’s Government.

The party wants the new Chancellor Jeremy Hunt to deliver a statement in the Commons, in order to calm the markets.

Lib Dem Treasury spokesperson Sarah Olney said: “Parliament must sit tomorrow so we can hear from this new Chancellor.

“After shamefully cutting her press conference short this afternoon, the Prime Minister and her new Chancellor must come to the House of Commons tomorrow to face questions from MPs.

“As the revolving door at Number 11 continues, the very least the latest one can do is come to Parliament tomorrow and deliver an urgent statement putting the final nail in the coffin of this budget.”

4.19pm

Sir John Redwood, the Conservative MP for Wokingham, said new Chancellor Jeremy Hunt and Prime Minister Liz Truss “have a lot of work to do” to try to get the economy going following the departure of Kwasi Kwarteng.

He told Sky News: “What I want is a good answer for the country, so I hope, now she’s changed chancellors, she and the new Chancellor complete the growth strategy and tell us how it’s going to work.

“They have a lot of work to do.”

Sir John added that he believes Liz Truss is the right person to lead the Tories to the next general election and urging his fellow MPs to “give every support and some good advice” to her to get to a “winning economic policy as soon as possible”.

Earlier, Liz Truss said she is ‘determined’ to see through plans amid calls for her resignation.

Jeremy Hunt has arrived at Downing Street to meet Prime Minister Liz Truss after being appointed Chancellor.

He did not wave or speak to reporters as he arrived via the gates to the Foreign Office and walked across the road to enter the main entrance to No 10.

Members of Liz Truss’s Cabinet have been tweeting support for her and the new Chancellor Jeremy Hunt.

Former chancellor Nadhim Zahawi tweeted: “It’s time to get Britain moving. We are determined to grow the economy, eliminate the covid backlog and protect people from Putin’s energy warfare.”

Deputy Prime Minister and close Truss ally Therese Coffey tweeted: “The PM is right to act now to ensure our country’s economic stability – key for families and businesses – and reassure the markets of our fiscal discipline, especially in light of the worsening global economic conditions with Putin’s illegal invasion of Ukraine.”

4.05pm

Liz Truss “forced” outgoing chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng to “carry the can for her decisions” and is now a “lame duck prime minister”, Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said as she called for a general election.

Ms Sturgeon told BBC News: “I think the only decent thing that Tory backbenchers can do now is call time on Liz Truss and this entire UK Government, and allow people across the UK to have a general election.

“This was beyond a joke, it was never funny, but Liz Truss has already through her own decisions crashed the economy and heaped misery on people who were already struggling with the cost-of-living crisis.

“Today she has forced her chancellor to carry the can for her decisions.

“She had already shown herself to be completely out of her depth as Prime Minister, and as of today she is also a lame duck prime minister.”

3.58pm

Jeremy Hunt has left his house in Pimlico, central London. Wearing a navy suit with a white shirt, the new Chancellor walked out of his house at 3.50pm on Friday and was driven away in a silver Land Rover.

He refused to answer any questions.

3.52pm

Ed Miliband has reshared David Cameron’s 2015 tweet that the UK faced a choice between himself as prime minister or “chaos” with the former Labour leader, accompanied by a clown emoji.

Following the resignation of Kwasi Kwarteng as chancellor and Liz Truss’s U-turn on his mini-budget, the shadow climate secretary tweeted: “The fever that has taken over the Tory party didn’t start with Liz Truss.

“Trickle down economics has been the guiding philosophy for 12 years. It has failed.”

3.46pm

Senior Tory Sir Bernard Jenkin has urged his colleagues to stop “rash talk of ditching” Liz Truss as he called for “calm”.

He tweeted: “The appointment of @Jeremy_Hunt as Chancellor is a wise choice. He is trusted and respected across Parliament.

“We must now be calm. Rash talk of ditching the PM, or calls for a general election, will not calm the financial markets.”

3.42pm

On the appointment of Jeremy Hunt as Chancellor, Rachel Reeves said: “Jeremy Hunt, like Kwasi Kwarteng and Liz Truss, signs up to this trickle-down model of economics, which has failed our country and has resulted in the instability and the insecurity and volatility that we’ve seen in the last three weeks since the former chancellor’s mini-budget.”

3.38pm

Philip Dunne, one of the few Tory MPs to back Jeremy Hunt’s bid to become Tory leader, told the PA news agency that he was a “very wise choice” to be Chancellor.

Calling Mr Hunt “calm”, Mr Dunne said he was a “senior experienced colleague to bring in as Chancellor”.

3.37pm

Shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves said Liz Truss should “put the country first” and “go back to the drawing board with her budget that was devised in lockstep with the former chancellor of the Exchequer”.

Asked what she would do as chancellor to repair the damage, she told reporters in Leeds: “We need to respect economic institutions – the undermining of the Bank of England, the sacking of the permanent secretary of the Treasury, the gagging of the Office for Budget Responsibility have all added to the volatility in the financial markets along with the scale of the unfunded tax cuts.

“Labour would always put fiscal responsibility and economic credibility first because we know that is so important for family finances.”

3.32pm

Senior Tory backbencher Sir Roger Gale questioned why Liz Truss dismissed Kwasi Kwarteng for implementing her economic policies.

The North Thanet MP tweeted: “Hard to understand why the Prime Minister has sacked her Chancellor – a good man – for promoting the policies upon which she was elected.

“Good, though, that in Jeremy Hunt there will be an experienced pair of hands on the financial tiller.”

3.23pm

Liz Truss has “trashed the British economy” and “humiliated the Conservative government in the eyes of the world”, according to Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey, who is calling for a general election.

Sir Ed added that he has no confidence in new Chancellor Jeremy Hunt’s ability to improve the state of the economy.

He told BBC News: “Liz Truss has trashed the British economy, she’s put hundreds of pounds on people’s mortgages, and she’s humiliated the Conservative government in the eyes of the world.”

When asked whether he was happy to see Mr Hunt made Chancellor, Sir Ed said: “When you look at his ideas on the economy, when he had his two bids to be the Tory leader, he wanted cuts in corporation tax larger than Liz Truss, so I’m afraid I don’t have confidence, whether it’s on the health service or the economy, with Jeremy Hunt.”

Asked about Liz Truss’s comments that her decisions today would help restore stability, Rachel Reeves said: “So much damage has already been done, people are having sleepless nights because of the high mortgage rates that they’re now paying, and they’re worrying as well about what’s happening to their pensions.

“The partial U-turn today does not reverse the whole budget, which is what is needed.

“But the truth is, the trickle-down tired economics of the Conservatives no longer works, and it is time for a Labour government that prioritises ordinary working people, not this belief that somehow tax cuts for the richest will somehow filter down to everybody else.”

Labour’s shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves told reporters in Leeds: “This is a Tory crisis, created in Downing Street but being paid for by ordinary working people – and so much damage has already been done, with families paying higher mortgage rates and worrying about their pensions.

“It’s not just time for another Conservative chancellor, it’s time for a Labour government, because only Labour have the plans to grow our economy and provide the economic stability that our country desperately needs, with a recognition that wealth does not just come from the top down, it’s created by ordinary working people right across the country.”

3.11pm

Jeremy Hunt has arrived at his house in Pimlico, London, just an hour after he was announced as Chancellor. Mr Hunt arrived in a black cab with his wife Lucia.

When asked what he hoped to achieve as Chancellor, he said: “We’ll have lots of chances to talk later.”

When a photographer congratulated him, he replied: “Thank you.”

Labour’s Jonathan Ashworth said the Government was in “meltdown”.

Mr Ashworth, speaking immediately after the Prime Minister’s press conference, told the BBC: “Liz Truss has sacked her Chancellor for carrying out the policies of Liz Truss, a set of policies that led to turmoil on the markets, which led to a run on pension funds and soaring mortgage rates for homeowners across the country.”

The shadow work and pensions secretary said: “What is clear now is that we have a Government in meltdown.

“This is clearly a disastrous set of decisions from a disastrous budget and actually what we need is not just a change of chancellor, we need a change of government.”

3.02pm

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said Kwasi Kwarteng’s sacking does not “undo the damage” already inflicted.

He tweeted: “Changing the chancellor doesn’t undo the damage made in Downing Street.

“Liz Truss’ reckless approach has crashed the economy, causing mortgages to skyrocket, and has undermined Britain’s standing on the world stage.

“We need a change in Government. With my leadership, Labour will secure Britain’s economy and get us out of this mess.”

3.01pm

Responding to Liz Truss’s press conference, the director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies said higher inflation means public spending cannot be increased much less quickly “without actually going down”.

Paul Johnson tweeted: “Liz Truss just said she will ensure spending increases less quickly than previously planned.

“Higher inflation has already eaten into plans set out a year ago. Can’t increase much less quickly without actually going down.”

2.59pm

Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said Liz Truss should resign as Prime Minister to restore “economic stability” to the UK.

“The best thing Liz Truss could do for economic stability now is resign,” Ms Sturgeon tweeted.

“Her decisions have crashed the economy and heaped misery on people already struggling with a cost of living crisis.

“The only decent thing for Tory MPs to do now is call time on her (Government) and allow an election.”

2.57pm

The pound swung lower after Prime Minister Liz Truss confirmed that the Government will reverse her policy to scrap the planned rise in corporation tax from 19% to 25%.

Sterling had pared back some of its early losses shortly before the Prime Minister’s speech but then dropped back, indicating that traders believe there is still more action to be taken.

The pound moved 1.2% lower at 1.119 against the US dollar after the update.

Meanwhile, yields on gilts – UK government bonds, which have come under severe pressure in recent weeks – also tipped higher to 4.5%, almost returning to levels from the market opening on Friday.

2.54pm

Liz Truss sidestepped questions about her position as Prime Minister, emphasising that she took “difficult decisions” in the interests of “economic stability”.

She was asked why she gets to stay in No 10 when Kwasi Kwarteng, with whom she designed the mini-budget in lockstep, was sacked as Chancellor.

Ms Truss told a brief press conference: “Well, my priority is making sure we deliver the economic stability that our country needs.

“That’s why I had to take the difficult decisions I’ve taken today.

“The mission remains the same. We do need to raise our country’s economic growth levels. We do need to deliver for people across the country. We’re committed to delivering on the energy price guarantee which people are already seeing in their bills.

“But ultimately, we also need to make sure that we have economic stability, and I have to act in the national interest as Prime Minister.”

Insisting she is “determined to deliver” on her campaign pledges, Liz Truss declined to apologise for the political turbulence in the wake of her economic policies.

Asked if she would apologise to her party, Ms Truss told reporters at Downing Street: “I am determined to deliver on what I set out when I campaigned to be party leader.

“We need to have a high-growth economy but we have to recognise that we are facing very difficult issues as a country.

“And it was right, in the national interest, that I made the decisions I’ve made today to restore that economic stability so we can deliver, first of all helping people through this winter and next winter with their energy bills, but also making sure that our country is on the long-term footing for sustainable economic growth.”

2.49pm

Liz Truss dodged a question on whether she has any “credibility” to continue as Prime Minister.

Taking a question from the BBC at the press conference, she said: “What I’ve done today is made sure that we have economic stability in this country.

“Jeremy Hunt as Chancellor is somebody who shares my desire for a high-growth, low-tax economy, but we recognise because of current market issues we have to deliver the mission in a different way.

“And that’s what we are absolutely committed to do – achieving that stability at what is a very difficult time globally.”

2.48pm

Liz Truss said it was “right” to act in the interests of economic stability and that she is “determined to see through what I’ve promised” when challenged about her political future.

Asked why she should remain as Prime Minister after reversing key tax cuts that led to her election as Tory leader and sacking her Chancellor, she told the press conference: “I’m absolutely determined to see through what I have promised, to deliver a higher growth, more prosperous United Kingdom, to see us through the storm we face.

“But it was right in the face of the issues that we had that I acted decisively to ensure that we have economic stability, because that is vitally important to people and businesses right across our country.”

2.47pm

Liz Truss said the Government must “act now” to reassure the markets of “our fiscal discipline”, as she admitted its economic plan must change.

She told the Downing Street press conference: “It is clear that parts of our mini-budget went further and faster than markets were expecting. So the way we are delivering our mission right now has to change.

“We need to act now to reassure the markets of our fiscal discipline.

“I have therefore decided to keep the increase in corporation tax that was planned by the previous government.

“This will raise £18 billion per year. It will act as a down payment on our full medium-term fiscal plan which will be accompanied by a forecast from the independent OBR.

“We will do whatever is necessary to ensure debt is falling as a share of the economy in the medium term.”

The Prime Minister continued: “I met the former chancellor earlier today. I was incredibly sorry to lose him.

“He is a great friend and he shares my vision to set this country on the path to growth.

“Today, I have asked Jeremy Hunt to take over as Chancellor – he is one of the most experienced and widely respected Government ministers and parliamentarians.

“He shares my convictions and my ambitions for our country.”

2.39pm

Asked by reporters whether she should resign, Ms Truss said: “I am absolutely determined to see through what I have promised.”

2.38pm

Liz Truss has insisted that she will “always act in the national interest”, adding: “We will get through this storm.”

She said: “It is clear that parts of our mini-budget went further and faster than markets were expecting so the way we are delivering our mission right now has to change.”

2.37pm

Liz Truss opened her press conference by saying her conviction for growth is rooted in her personal experiences.

Speaking in Downing Street the Prime Minister said: “My conviction that this country needs to go for growth is rooted in my personal experience.

“I know what it’s like to grow up somewhere that isn’t feeling the benefits of growth. I saw what that meant. And I’m not prepared to accept that for our country. I want a country where people can get good jobs, new businesses can set up and families can afford an even better life.

“That’s why from day one, I’ve been ambitious for growth.”

2.36pm

BREAKING: The Prime Minister told a press conference she was elected by her party to deliver a “low tax, high wage, high growth economy” and “that mission remains”.

2.35pm

BREAKING: Liz Truss has reversed her policy to scrap the planned rise in corporation tax from 19% to 25%.

2.10pm

An Extinction Rebellion protest is being held on Whitehall outside Downing Street. The protesters cheered the news that Kwasi Kwarteng has been fired as chancellor.

BREAKING: Chris Philp has been appointed Paymaster General, swapping jobs with Edward Argar who becomes Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Downing Street said.

1.56pm

BREAKING: Former foreign secretary and Conservative leadership contender Jeremy Hunt has been named Chancellor, Downing Street said.

1.49pm

In her letter to Kwasi Kwarteng, Liz Truss wrote: “As a long-standing friend and colleague, I am deeply sorry to lose you from the Government.

“We share the same vision for our country and the same firm conviction to go for growth.

“I deeply respect the decision you have taken today. You have put the national interest first.

“I know that you will continue to support the mission that we share to deliver a low tax, high wage, high growth economy that can transform the prosperity of our country for generations to come.”

1.46pm

Rachel Reeves said Kwasi Kwarteng’s sacking as chancellor “doesn’t undo the damage” already inflicted.

Labour’s shadow chancellor said: “Changing the chancellor doesn’t undo the damage that’s already been done.

“It was a crisis made in Downing Street: Liz Truss and the Conservatives crashed the economy causing mortgages to skyrocket and has undermined Britain’s standing on the world stage.

“We don’t just need a change in chancellor, we need a change in Government. Only Labour offers the leadership and ideas Britain needs to secure the economy and get out of this mess.”

1.44pm

Liz Truss has told Kwasi Kwarteng that she is “sorry” to lose him as Chancellor, adding: “You have put the national interest first.”

1.37pm

The pound dropped back after the Chancellor confirmed his departure from Liz Truss’s Government.

Sterling started the day in positive territory as traders welcomed speculation that the Government could step back from plans to reverse an increase in corporation tax next year.

However, it has now fallen by 1.06% to 1.12 against the US dollar as the departure of Kwasi Kwarteng presented the markets with more potential uncertainty.

Meanwhile, yields on UK Government bonds known as gilts have stabilised at around 4.3%.

1.28pm

The Prime Minister’s press conference will be held at 2.30pm in the Downing Street briefing room, No 10 has said.

1.16pm

In his letter to Liz Truss, Kwasi Kwarteng wrote in part: “Dear Prime Minster. You have asked me to stand aside as your Chancellor. I have accepted.

“When you asked me to serve as your Chancellor, I did so in full knowledge that the situation we faced was incredibly difficult, with rising global interest rates and energy prices. However, your vision of optimism, growth and change was right.

“The economic environment has changed rapidly since we set out the Growth Plan on 23 September. It is important now as we move forward to emphasise your government’s commitment to fiscal discipline. The Medium-Term Fiscal Plan is crucial to this end, and I look forward to supporting you and my successor to achieve that from the backbenches.”

1.15pm

Kwasi Kwarteng has left Downing Street after accepting Prime Minister Liz Truss’ request he stand down as Chancellor.

He waved to reporters as he left via the front entrance of Number 11 before getting in a car.

1.13pm

In a letter to the Prime Minister, posted on his Twitter account, Mr Kwarteng said: “As I have said many times in the past weeks, following the status quo was simply not an option. For too long this country has been dogged by low growth rates and high taxation — that must still change if this country is to succeed.”

1.09pm

BREAKING: Kwasi Kwarteng said he has accepted Liz Truss’s request he “stand aside” as Chancellor.

12:37pm

Earlier, Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey called for a general election in response to reports that Kwasi Kwarteng is being sacked as Chancellor.

He said: “This mustn’t just be the end of Kwarteng’s disastrous chancellorship, it should be the death knell of the Conservatives’ reckless mismanagement of our economy.

“Enough is enough. It started with Boris Johnson failing our country, and now Liz Truss has broken our economy, it is time for the people to have their say in a general election.”

Kwasi Kwarteng arrived in Downing Street via the back entrance just after noon.