Kwasi Kwarteng 'sacked as chancellor' as Liz Truss to hold press conference today - LIVE updates

Prime minister Liz Truss will hold a press conference today amid speculation that she is set to announce another u-turn on the mini-budget. It comes as reports emerge that Kwasi Kwarteng will lose his job as chancellor today.

Mr Kwarteng flew back to London from the United States this morning for crisis talks with the PM following days of market turmoil. It has been reported that No 10 and the Treasury plan on abandoning elements of the £43 billion tax-cutting plan - including a key pledge made in September's mini-budget, to scrap a planned increase in corporation tax.

On Thursday, Downing Street refused to deny that the potential exists for a reversal on the corporation tax policy. Ms Truss will hold a press conference by herself later today, it is understood.

Reports from The Times suggest Mr Kwarteng will be sacked by Ms Truss today. The BBC has also reported that Mr Kwarteng has been sacked.

Before he left the US, Mr Kwarteng answered “absolutely 100%” when asked if he will be in office in a month, adding: “I’m not going anywhere.”

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If Mr Kwarteng loses his job as chancellor today it would make him the second shortest-serving chancellor of the last century.

Reports that the government is planning a major climbdown on its mini-budget appear to have helped settle nerves among investors. The markets were calmer in early trading today.

Mr Kwarteng, who is now understood to have been sacked as chancellor, initially insisted he stood by his economic growth plan and would be setting out how he intends to get public finances back on track in a statement on October 31. However, he came under pressure from MPs and later refused to rule out ditching his promise on corporation