‘She was clearly incapable of doing the job’ - reaction as Liz Truss confirms she will quit as Prime Minister, with new boss in Number 10 by Halloween

In a short statement outside Number 10, the former Foreign Secretary said she had already informed King Charles III of her decision to stand down.

Arrangements for her succession had already been discussed with senior figures in the Conservative Party, with a leadership election expected to be completed within the next week.

According to Sir Graham Brady, the chairman of the 1922 Committee of backbench Tory MPs, a new prime minister will be in place by Halloween.

The move brings the curtain down on a brief tenure which saw markets spooked by her economic plans within weeks of replacing her predecessor Boris Johnson.

Ms Truss’s decision to step down followed another day of chaos in Parliament on Wednesday (October 19) with the resignation of Home Secretary Suella Braverman, the second holder of a ‘great office of state’ to depart under the current Prime Minister’s short tenure.

Early on Thursday (October 20), Hartlepool MP Jill Mortimer confirmed she was among several Conservative Parliamentarians who had submitted letters of no confidence in the Prime Minister due to the “deteriorating situation” at the heart of Government.

She is yet to respond to further requests for comment from the Mail.

Labour’s parliamentary candidate for Hartlepool, Cllr Jonathan Brash, has called for a general election following the news.

He said: “She has been in office for little over a month and in that time she has managed to crash the British economy, make everyone’s mortgage rates go up, threaten our pensions and crash the pound.

"After all that economic damage she has now resigned to leave it to somebody else.

"She was clearly incapable of doing the job. On that basis it’s a good thing she has resigned.

"But the big message is the Conservative party have completely lost control of the Government, of the economy and the country.

"The only sensible thing to do now is have a General Election and let the people decide who they want to run the country because they can’t do it themselves anymore.”

Tees Valley Mayor Ben Houchen, one of the most senior Conservative figures in the North East, said Ms Truss had done "the right thing" by resigning.

"The whole thing is a total mess,” he added.

“It’s no secret that Liz wasn’t the candidate I chose and she’s done the right thing to stand down.

“We need to see a new leader appointed quickly that will get on with tackling the challenges we face as a country, making swift progress on putting more money in the pockets of people across Teesside, Darlington and Hartlepool, and urgently addressing their concerns on energy bills this winter. "

"As always, I’ll be focused on continuing to deliver for people across Teesside, Darlington and Hartlepool and not party politics.

“As it was clear this couldn’t go on and was going to end soon I came to London today to make sure that plans and projects we’re progressing stay on track to deliver for local people and I’ll be meeting ministers later today.”