Liz Truss announced as the new leader of the Conservative Party - and next Prime Minister

Sir Graham Brady has just made the announcement at Queen Elizabeth II Centre auditorium.

She recieved 81,326 of the votes while competitor Rishi Sunak received 60,399.

In her speech, she paid tribute to the other Tory leadership race candidates, particularly Rishi Sunak.

She said the campaign was "hard-fought" and showed "the depth and breadth of talent" in the party.

She also thanked Boris Johnson for standing up to Vladimir Putin, getting Brexit done, rolling out the Covid vaccine and "crushing Jeremy Corbyn".

Tomorrow she will become prime minister when she visits the Queen in Balmoral for an invitation to form her UK government.

The new Tory leader is now under immediate pressure to announce a plan to tackle soaring energy costs.

It is expected that she will set out her plans later this week.

Following the announcement, The Mayor of West Yorkshire, Tracy Brabin, said “My door is open for the new Prime Minister who will urgently have to grapple with the cost-of-living crisis.

“Here in West Yorkshire, one in three households will have no disposable income left after paying their energy bills as things currently stand, and I’m calling on Liz Truss to urgently freeze the energy price cap to provide them a lifeline.

"Her new Government must also deliver on her pledge to deliver Northern Powerhouse Rail in full, with that vital new station in Bradford, as well as come good on long-promised investment to help make “levelling up” a reality and not just a soundbite.”