Sunak to face Starmer at PMQs after Tories' heavy election losses

1. What can we expect from this week's PMQs?

   

   Chris Mason

   Political editor

   Hello from the press gallery.

   This is the first time the prime minister has faced the Commons since those grim election results for him last week.

   But those on his own side who wanted rid of him have accepted defeat, they’re not going to turf him out before the election.

   We can expect some jubilation from Labour, but that said, Labour faced some tough questions from us reporters after PMQs last week on their approach to small boat crossings and asylum seekers.

   The government has some tough questions to answer on that too – their Rwanda scheme that they are now trying to make happen.

   Let’s where the questioning takes us this week.

2. Sunak 'determined fight on' despite local election losses

   

   ReutersCopyright: Reuters

   We're expecting to see Rishi Sunak attempt to rally Conservative MPs during PMQs today, after his party lost councils, a by-election, and mayoral contests to Labour during the local elections last week.

   The prime minister said that while the results were "disappointing", the general election result is "not a foregone conclusion".

   On Monday, the PM said he was "determined more than ever to show the public that what we're doing is making a difference".

   He also insisted his party was "united" on its values.

   The BBC has spoken to a number of Tory MPs who say they are feeling increasingly pessimistic.

   One senior figure in the party described the next months as "managed decline", and talked of the Conservatives waiting for their fate.

   Read more: Rishi Sunak vows to fight on – but Tory MPs feel gloomy

3. What happened at the local elections?

   Today’s PMQs is the first since the local elections last week, which saw major Conservative losses while opposition parties, chief among them Labour, made substantial gains across the country.

   The Tories lost more than 470 councillors and control of 10 councils. The party also failed to hold on to the parliamentary seat in Blackpool South, where it lost to Labour.

   Elsewhere, smaller opposition parties performed well with the Liberal Democrats returning 521 councillors - more than the Conservatives on 513 - while the Greens secured their highest ever tally of seats.

   Of the 11 mayoral races, Labour won in 10 areas - the East Midlands, Greater Manchester, Greater London, Liverpool City Region, the North East, Salford, South Yorkshire, the West Midlands, West Yorkshire, and York and North Yorkshire.

   Read more here.

4. Sunak back in the Commons after bruising election defeats

   

   Good morning and welcome to our coverage of this week’s Prime Minister’s Questions.

   It’s Rishi Sunak’s first time at the despatch box since his party suffered heavy losses at the local elections last week. He’ll face off with Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer, having lost 470 council seats and all but one mayoral contests.

   Sunak has described the local election results as "disappointing", but said the general election result is not a "foregone conclusion".

   (As a reminder, the general election has not been announced, but has to take place by January next year.)

   We’ll soon hear what questions Starmer has for Sunak, so stay with us as we bring you live updates and analysis from our political correspondents.

   You can also follow our live stream by pressing the Play button at the top of this page.