this is bbc news. these are the latest headlines in the uk and around the world: the contest to be conservative leader and the uk's next prime minister — three names are in the frame, including recently ousted borisjohnson. supporters of former chancellor rishi sunak say he's gained the backing of enough mps to make it to the next stage. he both the economic credentials, but also bringing people together and the ability to restore confidence of the public. borisjohnson is back from a holiday in the caribbean after telling an ally he's ready to enter the race the leader of the commons, penny mordaunt, is the only person to have formally announced their candidacy. in other news, at the china congress, president xi's predecessor,

hi jintao, is mysteriously led out of the hall by officials. giorgia meloni has been sworn in as the head of italy's latest coalition government. she's the nation's first female prime minister, and its first far—right leader since the second world war. hello and welcome if you're watching in the uk or around the world. borisjohnson has arrived back from holiday as the battle to replace liz truss as conservative leader — and prime minister — intensifies. mrjohnson�*s plane touched down at gatwick airport in the last hour. neither he nor rishi sunak have declared their candidacy — only penny mourdant has officially put her name forward.

but it's widely being seen as a battle between the former prime minister and the man who worked with him as chancellor. currently the bbc estimates 168 out of 357 tory mps have gone public with their support — rishi sunak has passed the key threshold of 100 backers, borisjohnson has 46 and penny mordaunt 21. it's worth pointing out that these are the numbers the bbc can verify — others may have different information. mps will vote on monday for their preferred candidate. if more than one reaches 100, conservative members will have the final say. 0ur political correspondent, rajdeep sandhu, is in westminster. those three names are the names in the frame, but it is not clear yet, at all, whether borisjohnson in particular will stand? at all, whether borisjohnson in particularwill stand? h0. at all, whether boris johnson in particular will stand?— at all, whether boris johnson in particular will stand? no, it's not

100% clear— particular will stand? no, it's not 100% clear because _ particular will stand? no, it's not 10096 clear because he _ particular will stand? no, it's not 10096 clear because he hasn't - 100% clear because he hasn't officially said he will go for it or not. we are hearing lots of speculation, lots of supporters coming out for him, making the case that he should stand. we have the trade minister saying that he has been told by borisjohnson that he is up for it. lots of heavy hints that he would like a return and have another go at the top job. of course, he is a character that kind of defies political rules and regulations and how things usually work here. he is a character who splits opinion notjust in the public but within the conservative party. there are those who are very vocal and say that he is the only man with a mandate because he won the 2019 general election and won the 2019 general election and won the massive majority for the conservatives and can deliver that manifesto, all the promises that were in it. 0thers

manifesto, all the promises that were in it. others say, hang on a minute, we are hearing this from former deputy prime minister dominic rob this morning, he says, what about party? what about the way he had to leave office? what about the upcoming parliamentary investigation that hangs over him? would that really allow him to focus on the country at a moment when there is a cost of living crisis, when people are battling their energy bills? would he really be able to focus on that if there our oral hearings about what he did and didn't say during the party gates scandal and whether he misled mps in parliament. there are still lots of questions circling borisjohnson. he has, we are hearing, landed back from his holiday in the dominican republic. it is hard to say whether he cut that short or he was returning anyway. but he is back in the uk,

which will only heighten speculation that he could be going for it because, of course, on monday, by tpm, is when contenders will need to have those 100 backers to get them on the ballot paper. —— by 2pm. some politicians have already been coming out in support of their preferred candidate to be the new prime minister of the uk. the former foreign secretary, dominic raab, has been speaking about why he's supporting rishi sunak as a contender. he has already come through the public declarations that have been tallied up, broken through the 100 nominations.— nominations. more important than that in terms _ nominations. more important than that in terms of— nominations. more important than that in terms of those _ nominations. more important than that in terms of those mps - nominations. more important than that in terms of those mps is - nominations. more important than that in terms of those mps is the l that in terms of those mp5 is the range, _ that in terms of those mp5 is the range, from devon seats to carlisle, welsh, _ range, from devon seats to carlisle, welsh, scottish mps, remain and leave~ _ welsh, scottish mps, remain and leave~ i_ welsh, scottish mps, remain and leave. i think the critical issue will be — leave. i think the critical issue will be the _ leave. i think the critical issue will be the economy. richey had the ri-ht will be the economy. richey had the right plan— will be the economy. richey had the right plan in the summer. —— rishi

sunak— right plan in the summer. —— rishi sunak had — right plan in the summer. —— rishi sunak had the right plan in the summen — sunak had the right plan in the summer. he can provide stability and confidence _ summer. he can provide stability and confidence for workers and businesses up and down the country. he is— businesses up and down the country. he is also— businesses up and down the country. he is also the right candidate to bring _ he is also the right candidate to bring the — he is also the right candidate to bring the party together to relentlessly deliver for the british people. _ relentlessly deliver for the british people, whether on the cost of living, — people, whether on the cost of living, crime, schools, nhs, and get us moving _ living, crime, schools, nhs, and get us moving forward. that is what the country _ us moving forward. that is what the country needs to see. one of those supporting the idea of borisjohnson returning as party leader and prime minister is andrew stephenson, who's currently a minister in the government. i'm encouraging boris johnson i'm encouraging borisjohnson to win because during the summer i helped oversee the conservative leadership election as party chairman, i travelled around the country to over 80 different constituencies. what i heard from party members and people in the street, the length and breadth of the country, is that they thought mps had been wrong to get rid of boris and they wanted him on the ballot. that couldn't have happened over summer because he had resigned, the contest was between liz truss and rishi sunak. but now

there is an opportunity for boris to put himself forward, which is what i'm encouraging to do. the mp for basingstoke, dame maria miller, is supporting penny mordaunt in her efforts to become party leader and prime minister. i'm backing penny because she is the candidate _ i'm backing penny because she is the candidate i_ i'm backing penny because she is the candidate i think cannot only bring the conservative party and parliament together but actually the whole _ parliament together but actually the whole country. she has a proven track— whole country. she has a proven track record _ whole country. she has a proven track record working across eight departments in her 12 years in parliament. i think her background really— parliament. i think her background really makes a well placed to connect — really makes a well placed to connect with people. after all, we are going — connect with people. after all, we are going through a tough time as a country— are going through a tough time as a country and — are going through a tough time as a country and we want to have a prime minister— country and we want to have a prime minister who— country and we want to have a prime minister who can really demonstrate that they— minister who can really demonstrate that they understand that and put the right— that they understand that and put the right support in place for those who are _ the right support in place for those who are struggling to pay their energy— who are struggling to pay their energy bills. here's how the leadership contest will play out

over the coming days. we could find out who's replacing liz truss as early as monday. conservative mps have until then to nominate their preferred candidate. each candidate needs at least 100 nominations — if only one of them achieves that, they'll be declared prime minister on monday afternoon at 2pm. if there are three candidates with 100 nominations, there'll be an mps' vote to narrow the choice to two. mps will then hold an indicative vote for mps on the two finalists, before the choice is handed to the conservative membership in the country, who will vote online. if that happens, the new party leader and prime minister will be declared on friday. let's now speak to charlotte ivers. she is a columnist for the times and the new statesman, as well as the times radio political correspondent. welcome. thank you forjoining us. what are your thoughts on how this race is shaping up and whether or not borisjohnson will go for it? well, it is really remarkable. we

are waiting on tenterhooks to hear from borisjohnson. his plane landed about an hour from borisjohnson. his plane landed aboutan hour orso from borisjohnson. his plane landed about an hour or so ago now, and he is in second place at the moment. he hasn't yet got 100 mps who will back him. rishi sunak, we think, has passed that watermark. johnson is around 70 or 80. but he obviously still hasn't formally declared whether he will stand. as far as i can tell from the conversations i have been having with people who know him, mps who have spoken to him, he is being pretty pugnacious with mps in terms of his attitude. he is saying that he is up for it, that he will run, but there is still some doubt about that. those who know him say he will only run if he thinks he can win. we will only get a formal announcement when he gets closer to 100. late a formal announcement when he gets closer to 100-— closer to 100. we are in new territory _ closer to 100. we are in new territory of _ closer to 100. we are in new territory of new _ closer to 100. we are in new territory of new ground - closer to 100. we are in new| territory of new ground being closer to 100. we are in new - territory of new ground being broken all the time, new records being set

in terms of ten years. there have been political leaders who have come back for a second go, having left their position. but never anything like this. it is only 45 days since borisjohnson was ousted and liz truss became prime minister. it is truss became prime minister. it is truly remarkable _ truss became prime minister. it 3 truly remarkable and, actually, what else is remarkable is that some of the people who wrote letters calling for borisjohnson to go just a few short months ago are now endorsing him for leader. they feel he is the best option for the conservative party. whereas there are a lot of mps who are extremely wary of johnson. he is telling people that things have changed, the cultural —— the cultural change. many of them don't believe that at all. those who don't believe that at all. those who don't believe that at all. those who don't believe in borisjohnson really are largely falling for rishi sunak at the moment. any mordant

comedy other one in the race, the only one who has officially declared, is like wishing at about 20 mp5 declared, is like wishing at about 20 mps or so, so it is unlikely that she will find a way to get to that 100 mark. it looks like we will see rishi sunak versus borisjohnson, or perhaps rishi sunak being the only person to make that threshold, at which point he automatically wins the leadership. late which point he automatically wins the leadership.— the leadership. we are seeing -ictures the leadership. we are seeing pictures of — the leadership. we are seeing pictures of rishi _ the leadership. we are seeing pictures of rishi sunak- the leadership. we are seeing pictures of rishi sunak and i the leadership. we are seeing i pictures of rishi sunak and boris johnson together, they worked together for some johnson together, they worked togetherfor some time, but johnson together, they worked together for some time, but it ended acrimoniously. what are the prospects if it doesn't up being those two on the final ballot? working together coming forward? certainly that is the hope among a lot of the grey beards of the conservative party, the grand old men, they would like to see some agreement between the final two

candidates, in order to make sure that we don't have a week—long leadership contest and all of the rank or that would entail. the question is, can a deal be done? there are some rumours that boris johnson and rishi sunak might bury the hatchet and come to some sort of agreement. to be a fly on the wall in that conversation would be remarkable. as you say, this is a relationship which is very severely damaged. borisjohnson made it quite clear over the summer, though he never fully endorsed liz truss, he did through proxies, and he thought that rishi sunak had done him wrong, that rishi sunak had done him wrong, that he was responsible for his downfall and could not be trusted. that did a huge amount of damage to rishi sunak over the summer. it is rishi sunak over the summer. it is not a happy _ rishi sunak over the summer. it is not a happy relationship. we are in the realms of speculation because we don't know how it will unfold in terms of who will end up standing on how the votes were full, but if it does end up being borisjohnson and

rishi sunak, presumably that would be borisjohnson as prime minister and rishi sunak as chancellor again. they have been four chancellors in a matter of weeks. most recently, jeremy hunt in place and tearing up the mini budget that liz truss introduced with the then chancellor. it is absolutely dizzying, isn't it, getting your head around the number of different people in these key jobs? it of different people in these key “obs? ., , , of different people in these key 'obs? . , , , of different people in these key “obs? . , , , ., jobs? it really is. it is worth notin: jobs? it really is. it is worth noting as — jobs? it really is. it is worth noting as well _ jobs? it really is. it is worth noting as well that - jobs? it really is. it is worth noting as well that boris - jobs? it really is. it is worth - noting as well that boris johnson noting as well that borisjohnson and rishi sunak, were they to come to some sort of deal, would then be working together on what is probably a more similar programme than boris johnson and liz truss. that is one of the things we have seen through the last few months. borisjohnson's ideological alignment with rishi sunak is closer than with liz truss. it was the personal element that stopped him from endorsing rishi

sunak. it will become a sticking point in the next few days, whatever happens was we are currently assuming that if the vote does go to the membership and it is between those two men then borisjohnson will win. he has in the past been immensely popular with party leadership. that might be quite a big assumption. we haven't got any recent polling of conservative minister go one. we know that rishi sunak didn't do too badly at all, a lot better than people thought he would do. he does have a base, he is fresh in peoples minds. it is not impossible that he will win. the bbc's current _ impossible that he will win. the bbc's current figures have rishi bbc�*s current figures have rishi sunak on 102 numbers. you mentioned figures that were different. you

understand that borisjohnson on upward of 70. how are the opposition parties looking at theirs? labour are way ahead in the polls currently. it is rather interesting on those numbers because there various different ways of counting it. a lot of mps cannot declare publicly who they are backing. if you take them into account, then you get to slightly different numbers. that certainly is an assessment of the mps who are actually publicly putting their names forward. in terms of the opposition parties, it is rather interesting. i was speaking earlier on times radio 2 one of the shadow cabinet, who said that they are all as bad as each other. none of these candidates have a mandate and we would need to have a mandate and we would need to have a general election. that is a line being pushed by the liberal democrats, the snp. the opposition are unanimous in that. that is

something being felt acutely by conservative mps as well, and something that is being pushed by various representatives hind closed doors of the leadership campaigns. they are 20 pitch their person as the person to avoid a general election. as you say, the polls are not looking good for the conservatives and turkeys do not vote for christmas.— conservatives and turkeys do not vote for christmas. thank you for “oininr vote for christmas. thank you for joining us- _ how popular are the two main contenders, borisjohnson and rishi sunak, among the public? sirjohn curtice, professor of politics at the university of strathclyde, has this assessment. the truth is, if you look at the opinion polls, the first thing you have to say is that quite a lot of people don't know, which is also an analogy for don't care, because they have never voted conservative and would never consider it. that said, the polling is remarkably similar to

the polling is remarkably similar to the previous contest. ask voters in general, rishi sunak is ahead. but if you look at the views of those who voted conservative previously, which is the number of people need to badly win back, then it looks as though mrjohnson is perhaps the more popular of the two. in a sense, it is a question of whether or not the conservatives feel like they are going to restore their fortunes by regaining their core vote, in which case they might want to go for mr johnson, orwhether or case they might want to go for mr johnson, or whether or not they want to maximise their appeal to the electorate in general, in which case it is pretty clear that rishi sunak is the person they should go for. what does the party need to do right now after what we have seen unfolding in recent weeks, in your

opinion? i unfolding in recent weeks, in your oinion? ~' , . opinion? i think the principal ruestion opinion? i think the principal question that _ opinion? i think the principal question that is _ opinion? i think the principal question that is facing - opinion? i think the principal question that is facing the i opinion? i think the principal. question that is facing the party opinion? i think the principal- question that is facing the party at the moment is, can it find a leader who is capable of uniting the party? i think around that, there is quite a substantial question. at least as far as rishi sunak and borisjohnson are concerned. it is clear there are some mps who have said it publicly that they would find it difficult to support a government headed by boris johnson. but, equally, there are those in thejohnson camp who was saying, rishi sunak was responsible for bringing mrjohnson down. we can argue that, but that is what they say. they blame him for the fact that public spending and taxation is as high as it is. they don't want to see him become prime minister.

therefore, we are asking ourselves whether or not either of these two people could unite the conservative party. whether or not the divisions are going to be perpetuated well beyond this contest, and therefore whether in the end either of these candidates can provide the country with stable and effective government andindeed with stable and effective government and indeed can maintain the confidence of the house of commons. essentially, the edge of the cliff thatis essentially, the edge of the cliff that is facing the conservative party at the moment is whether or not it's internal antagonism and factionalism is precipitating the very one thing that probably none of them want, which is a general election. unless they can find a primer on a who can command the confidence of the house of commons, then the conclusion will be we will need to have a general election because the one thing that has to be in place is a government that the commons are willing to keep and to

allow to govern with a reasonable degree of effectiveness. the uk's economic outlook has been lowered from stable to negative by the ratings agency moody's. the group said political uncertainty and last month's mini—budget had contributed to its decision. the rating is a marker of how likely the country is to pay back its debts. there have been some extraordinary scenes at china's rulling communist party congress, with the former chinese leader, hujintao, being led out of the closing ceremony in beijing. as you can see here, mr hu was sitting beside president xijinping in the great hall of the people when he was approached by officials who took him by the arm and led him away. it's not clear what was behind the move, during what's usually a highly choreographed event. 0ur correspondent, steve mcdonell, has more from beijing. incredible scenes there at the great hall of the people this morning. and it's left a lot of people scratching their heads wondering what's going on. i think to unpack this,

it's probably best to take it chronologically. so the morning session initially was behind closed doors. then the second part of the last day at the congress, some journalists were allowed into the great hall of the people. hu jintao was sitting in the front row on stage and then in front of the cameras, several officials came along and said to him, you could see the ushering, "you should go." he looks like he doesn't want to leave. but then he says something to xijinping, who nods. he tapped his protege, li keqiang, on the shoulder and is helped off the stage. now there are only two possibilities, really. one is that this is sort of chinese power politics on display with xi jinping out with the old in with him. you know, there's something like that. and that was people's initial feeling, the initial thought of what was going on.

really, though, i think what's much more likely is that it's something to do with his health, because when you look at the footage a little bit earlier, when he's still sitting down to his left on stage, other seniorfigures in the party, you can see they're turning to him. they look a bit worried about him. and then when he stands up and the fact that he says something to xijinping and nods, i think what's most likely is that he has some sort of a serious health problem. and that's why china's former leader wasn't able to sit through the final session there at the communist party congress. donald trump has been summoned to the hearing via subpoena. donald trump has claimed the inquiry is politically motivated.

the new italian government has been sworn in at a ceremony in rome. she is the first female primer and the first far right leader since world war ii. her party gained just over quarter of the vote. i asked a political correspond at what challenges she will be facing. she has plenty of matters that require her urgent attention, from energy, italy's position when it comes to russia, and giving a clear understanding of what her government will be like. as of now, everyone has been guessing whether she will be a far right politician or a more

compromising leader. when it comes to how other countries are going to be observing this and dealing with that government, what is the sense? european partners in france and germany have been questioning the change of leadership in the middle of an energy crisis and with so many international situations going on. so everyone will really watch carefully how first moves. the deployment of the foreign minister is sending a clear message outside italy, which is one of reassurance.

he is a very pro—european, pro—ukraine, anti—russian politician, so that is set to reassure international partners. there has been a high level of contact between russia and ukraine. ukrainian authorities said 40% of its energy info structure has been seriously damaged by russian attacks. they may need to import power to get through this winter. a sheet of paper with handwritten lyrics with two songs by the sex pistols have sold in london. the page has the words for holidays in the sun and submission, written by the sun and submission, written by the bad's front man, john leyden, in 1977. it was part of memorabilia that went under the hammer in

sotheby�*s. a high—speed chase lead to thousands of dollars being scattered across the highway in chile. police were chasing robbers in a high—speed chase when it happened. you were watching bbc news. now it's time for a look at the weather. the weather will be changing all the time this weekend. wherever you are, you can expect some rain at times, but equally some sunny breaks and it is going to feel mild. through the rest of the day, cloud and some outbreaks of rain continuing northwards through northern ireland and scotland. sunny spells for england and wales, but heavy downpours pushing into south—western parts, with ten chilly some flashes of thunder. temperatures higher than they should be at this time of year.

a little bit chilly in the north—east of scotland, and elsewhere it will be mild. wet to start across the south to stop these heavy bursts of rain will drive northwards through the day, sunny spells behind, but further heavy, thundery showers through the afternoon. breezy for some, with highs of 1a to 18 degrees.

hello this is bbc news with joanna gosling. the headlines the contest to be conservative leader and the uk's next prime minister — three names are in the frame, including recently ousted borisjohnson. at the china congress, president xi's predecessor hi jintao is mysteriously led out of the hall by officials. giorgia meloni has been sworn in as the head of italy's latest coalition government. she's the nation's first female prime mnister — and its first far—right leader

since the second world war. summoned to give evidence under oath — former us president donald trump is called by the committee investigating last year's attack on the capitol building. now on bbc news, ros atkins on the week. when a prime minister takes office there is no time limit, no fixed number of terms. their leadership stretches out in front of us. margaret thatcher stood down after 11 years. tony blair served ten. recently, though, we've had four prime ministers in six years — all of them conservatives. david cameron left downing street after the brexit vote. theresa may then had three years before tory mps intervened. it was the same for borisjohnson.