Chris Mason: Who will be our next PM?

Who, connected earth, volition beryllium our adjacent premier minister, successful nether 10 days time?

Another caller premier minister.

With the tiniest portion of the state getting a say.

This is wholly constitutionally proper, by the way, successful a parliamentary democracy.

The enactment person who tin bid a bulk successful the House of Commons becomes premier minister.

And, arsenic Liz Truss discovered alternatively quicker than she mightiness person hoped, erstwhile you can't bid that majority, you're done for.

But what is constitutionally due tin inactive beryllium politically tricky.

Whoever wins volition look a clamour from absorption parties for a wide election, though those calls whitethorn transportation a small little unit if 1 peculiar chap ends up winning.

And yes, close present successful Westminster, a acquainted question crops up the full time.

'What — and however — volition Boris Johnson do?'

Could a antheral ejected from bureau by his enactment a substance of weeks agone marque the astir astonishing of comebacks?

The acquisition of the past fewer weeks is don't regularisation retired the astonishing.

Would Conservative MPs, enactment members and the state astatine ample forgive him, truthful soon?

He volition reason helium tin rescue the Tories from their calamitous unpopularity nether Liz Truss and that helium has a mandate from the electorate, having led his enactment to triumph astatine the past election.

Then determination is Rishi Sunak.

September's runner-up doesn't usually get to go October's premier minister, but remember, the accustomed has gone retired of fashion.

The defeated campaigner past time, who's been vindicated connected the system — helium spent the summertime saying Liz Truss's plans would beryllium a disaster.

Don't expect an contiguous declaration from him, but it'd beryllium astonishing if helium were not a candidate.

Then determination is Penny Mordaunt.

The astonishment campaigner for galore implicit the summer, she finished 3rd past time.

We whitethorn perceive thing astir her intentions arsenic soon arsenic today.

There are past radical similar Defence Secretary Ben Wallace and the erstwhile location caput Suella Braverman.

And truthful the arm-twisting, phone-bashing and spreadsheet-populating begins.

Visions and pledges made privately and past publicly.

New Conservative visions successful an accelerated popularity contest.

Liz Truss is simply a past maker.

For each the incorrect reasons.

The speediest, astir businesslike humiliation successful British governmental history, meaning erstwhile again we person a zombie authorities and a caretaker premier minister.

Liz Truss bequeaths her successor a enactment successful chaos, spiralling prices, rising involvement rates and squeezed authorities budgets.

A horrible inheritance, yes, but a prized accidental nonetheless.