The person tasked with mopping up the mess left behind by Liz Truss will need to show they can unite the Conservative party and enact legislation — or an early general election could be called by the King.
That's the verdict of Scotland's top polling expert, Sir John Curtice, professor of politics at Strathclyde University, who says voters believe the Conservatives are in terminal decline.
Speaking to the BBC yesterday, he warned that if the Conservatives cannot unite around a new Prime Minister, it could put King Charles "in a difficult place".
He said: "It may well be that neither Liz Truss nor anybody else is willing to say to the Crown, ‘Nobody can form a government in this parliament, therefore we need an election.’
“It may just be that the Crown finds itself having to make a judgment as to how it is going to be possible to form a stable government. This is the most remote of possibilities, but it is beginning to be discussed.
“Ultimately, if the Crown were to come to the conclusion that there isn’t anybody who can become prime minister and maintain the confidence of the House of Commons within this current parliament, the Crown could ultimately on its own volition decide to call an election.
“Of course, that would be a very extreme step.”