Larry the cat has become Downing Street’s first Chief Mouser to serve under six prime ministers after Sir Keir Starmer’s general election victory.

The black-and-white tabby arrived from Battersea Dogs and Cats Home in February 2011 and has been one of the few constants at No 10 ever since.

Sir Keir’s landslide win last week means Larry has now served more occupants of Downing Street than any of his predecessors.

The 17-year-old moggie has also been in his role during the premierships of Lord Cameron, Theresa May, Boris Johnson, Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak.

But he has four more years fighting Westminster’s mouse problem ahead if he is to become the longest-serving mouser.

That accolade is held by Peter III, who held the post between 1947 and 1964 but only served under five prime ministers – Attlee, Churchill, Eden, Macmillan and Douglas-Home.

The original Peter was the second cat to serve in the formal role, succeeding Treasury Bill, and was in post for 17 years.

Between the two cats came Peter II, who took the job as a two-month-old kitten but was struck by a car in Whitehall after just six months and was put to sleep shortly afterwards.

Larry, whose full honorary title is Chief Mouser to the Cabinet Office, is held in higher regard than either Sir Keir or his predecessor Mr Sunak, an Ipsos poll found last week.

The survey showed 44 per cent of people have a favourable opinion of Larry, while just four per cent take an unfavourable view.

This makes him significantly more popular than the new Prime Minister, who is seen favourably by 34 per cent and unfavourably by 41 per cent.

Just 22 per cent of voters had a favourable view of Mr Sunak at the end of his time in Downing Street, with 58 per cent having an unfavourable opinion.

Larry has provided no shortage of memorable moments during his time at Downing Street.

He faced his first calls to resign within months of starting the job in 2011 after he was spotted sleeping on the job for hours as a Downing Street press conference took place.

But these were rejected by the then prime minister’s spokesman, who insisted he “brings a lot of pleasure to a lot of people”.

Larry was introduced to Barack Obama, the then American president, by Lord Cameron within months of taking the job.

He has occasionally come to blows with Palmerston, the mouser at the Foreign Office, and Downing Street paid for him to see a vet after he was wounded in one of their fights.

On July 26, 2016 the backdoor to No 10 was left open, and Palmerston, sneaked in. In the ensuing fight, Larry lost his collar and Palmerston’s ear was damaged. Palmerston was later evicted by resident police with Larry regaining his No 10 territory back

In 2016, the then outgoing prime minister Lord Cameron posted a snap showing Larry snuggled on his lap amid rumours the pair didn’t get on.

In 2022, Larry was memorably captured on camera chasing a fox from outside the Prime Minister’s residence, marching it backwards, over a railing and into a bush late at night.

It has been reported Sir Keir is planning to bring a dog to Downing Street to help ease his son and daughter into life in No 10.

Asked before the election whether he would take after Boris Johnson, who brought in Dilyn, Sir Keir said his children “have been on a campaign to get a dog for a number of years now”.

“[A] German shepherd is the current favourite, although there’s a range of possibilities, so we shall see,” he told Times Radio.

“But as I say I’m getting into dangerous territory now because if my boy and girl get hold of this footage, I’ll be confronted with it when I get back to them.”

The Starmers already have a cat of their own, Jojo, a rescue cat who is likely to view the move to Downing Street with some apprehension.

Ms Truss, Mr Johnson’s successor, said she started her short tenure “itching” because “the place was infested with fleas”, saying there were claims but “no evidence” Dilyn was at fault.

The boyfriend of one of the three women killed in a crossbow attack in Hertfordshire has said she was “stolen from me too soon”.

Alex Klein, who was in a relationship with Hannah Hunt, the 28-year-old daughter of the BBC racing commentator John Hunt, posted a picture of the pair on Instagram with the words: “RIP the love of my life, I will never forget you, stolen from me too soon.

“The brightest light in my life. My brave queen for life. Until we meet again… I love you Hansy.”

Mr Klein also posted pictures of the couple at an investor event, as well as a picture showing them kissing and embracing in a swimming pool. “Forever with me,” he wrote.

Mr Klein’s Instagram account suggests the couple took a holiday to Tenerife in March last year.

Hannah died alongside her mother Carol, 61, and sister Louise, 25, when they were attacked at their home in Bushey on Tuesday.

Kyle Clifford, the suspected killer, was detained in Lavender Hill Cemetery, close to his home in Enfield, north London, on Wednesday night following a huge manhunt. Louise Hunt is understood to have recently broken up with him.

A woman answering the door at the home of Mr Klein, a short drive from the house where Carol, Hannah and Louise were killed, told The Telegraph: “My family are all devastated. We are in mourning, and we need space to grieve for the loss of Carol, Hannah and Louise. This has been truly terrible for all of us.”

Three close friends of Carol Hunt have said they are “together in grief” after she was killed.

Dionne Smith, 58, Abigail Phillips, also 58, and 60-year-old Lea Holloway, told reporters outside St James’ Church in Bushey on Thursday: “She was a lovely, lovely person. We can’t believe what happened. We were a four, and now there’s only three. It doesn’t seem real. We are together in grief.”

Lea Holloway said she had known Mrs Hunt since she was 16, describing her as a “beautiful person”. Speaking outside the church, she said: “We grew up together and were pregnant at the same time. 

“This is the stuff nightmares are made of. It’s very difficult. She was the nicest, kindest, sweetest person you could ever meet. A beautiful person. They were a lovely family and they [the daughters] were lovely girls.

“They were making their way through life and their lives have been taken too soon. It’s the thing of nightmares. I feel for their eldest daughter and John. I can’t imagine what it would be like.”

Hannah Hunt worked as a beautician in Radlett, Hertfordshire, while her younger sister ran a successful dog grooming business in Bushey, where the family lived.

Posting a tribute, Hannah’s colleagues said they were struggling to come to terms with the news.

In a post on Facebook, The Anti-Ageing Clinic said: “She was a fantastic therapist, and clients loved her. We send our condolences and prayers to her dad, sister and family. She was very much a part of our team. Please bear with us at this terrible time.”

Su Kehinde, 60, a neighbour of the family, paid tribute to them as she laid flowers close to their home. She said: “They were the loveliest, gentlest family. They did not deserve this. They were beautiful souls.”

Writing on Louise’s social media, Kara Gregory wrote: A beautiful, kind-hearted soul taken way too soon. I’ll cherish our memories working together; Louise, fly high sweet angel.”

Also posting on the page, Carol Lynne Oates wrote: “The nation is in shock and utter disbelief at such a senseless act. A beautiful family gone, for what? 

“My prayers go to you, Hannah and your mum. May you all RIP. I hope your dad and wider family can somehow find the strength and courage to carry on.”

Meanwhile, detectives investigating the killings have carried out further searches at a house in Rendlesham Road, Enfield, where it is believed Clifford lived.

Police staff wearing gloves and face masks were seen outside the property, which was first searched on Wednesday.

Britain has been forced to clarify it has not given permission for Ukraine to use Storm Shadows to strike inside Russia in an awkward diplomatic moment for Sir Keir Starmer.

Downing Street said on Thursday, government policy “had not changed” regarding the deployment of the long-range missiles, despite comments from the Prime Minister that suggested he was loosening restrictions on how the missiles are used.

The British Government has allowed Kyiv to fire the missiles against targets in Crimea and mainland Ukraine since they were delivered last year, but has banned the country from using them to hit targets inside Russia.

Officials are concerned such a move would escalate the war, and could draw the UK into a conflict with Russia.

Volodymyr Zelensky, the Ukrainian president – who has been meeting world leaders at Nato’s 75th anniversary in Washington – announced on Wednesday evening that he had been granted permission to use strategic cruise missiles in Russia.

Posting on X, formerly Twitter, Mr Zelensky shared a photograph of himself and Sir Keir, with the caption: “This morning, I learnt about the permission to use Storm Shadow missiles against military targets in Russian territory. Today, we had the opportunity to discuss the practical implementation of this decision.”

Sources confirmed the missile has not been used this year and stressed that Mr Zelensky would have to “seek assurances elsewhere” before Ukraine could fire the cruise missiles into Russian territory. 

They added that these assurances were not a done deal.

A senior defence source said the situation was “more nuanced” than Ukraine’s president had suggested.

They added that permission to launch the strategic missile into Russia would require a sign off from three countries, one of which is the United Kingdom. France manufactures the Storm Shadow alongside the UK.

“It’s not going to happen,” the source added when asked if Ukraine will fire Storm Shadow into Russia.

On Thursday night Sir Keir told the Nato summit that he had “reaffirmed our unshakeable support for Ukraine’s ultimate victory.”

He said the alternative was “unthinkable” as he described Russia using “some of the deadliest weapons in its arsenal on innocent children”, when it struck a children’s cancer hospital in Kyiv earlier this week.

Sir Keir said Britain would provide £3 billion per year to Ukraine and speed up the delivery of military aid.

As the “generational threat” from Russia demands a “generational response”, he confirmed plans to boost British defence spending to 2. 5 per cent of gross per cent of their GDP on defence,” he said. “But in light of the grave threats to our security, we must go further.”

Earlier this year Lord Cameron, the former foreign secretary, met president Zelensky in Kyiv, where he made comments about Ukraine’s right to defend itself which were interpreted by Russia as a “dangerous” threat to use British-gifted missiles on Russian territory.

Adml Sir Tony Radakin, the Chief of the Defence Staff, later clarified that the cruise missile could only be used inside Crimea and the mainland of Ukraine.

Jamie Shea, a former Nato official, on Wednesday responded to Sir Keir’s statements on the Storm Shadow as giving Mr Zelensky a “shot in the arm”.

The Ukrainians “have to be able to strike back against those significant military targets”, he said.

But on Thursday, Mr Zelensky appeared to recognise that full permission for cross-border strikes had not been granted.

“We have got very good messages from the UK leader,” he told a Nato press conference, but said no decision had been made yet.

Meanwhile, Britain’s strategic defence review will be launched next week, setting out how Sir Keir intends to meet his spending target.

Closer defence ties

Announcing the review, John Healey, the Defence Secretary, insisted that seeking closer defence ties with Brussels would not bind the UK into a European defence force.

The Defence Secretary said, however, that Britain would seek to join more EU military programmes.

He suggested that Britain could seek to join more areas of the EU’s permanent structured co-operation (Pesco) programme.

The UK is already part of one Pesco scheme on moving military equipment across the EU.

Mr Healey said: “So we’ve proved we can do it. There are one or two other programmes which may well be programmes in which we have a unique contribution to make and we can get a great deal out of being part of a programme like that.

“That does not require any new formal agreement, it does not require a EU-UK security pact in order to do that.”

Mr Healey acknowledged that talks on the formal security pact with the EU sought by the Government were unlikely to start this year.

“In a way the declaration in week one from the new Government is seen as significant by the European Union and its members,” he said.

“You’ll know that the European Union, European Commission takes a good few months to get itself sorted out and so it won’t be until the end of the year that it’s really in a position to start doing any sort of detailed discussion with us.”

However, Ben Wallace, the former defence secretary, told The Telegraph: “It is not a new assertion that the UK supports international law of a state defending itself from an aggressor. Part of that law has been the ability for the defender to use weapons to target military facilities engaged in aggression in another state, in this case Russia.

It’s just a restatement of the Government’s permission.”

Dan Jarvis, the new Labour security minister, said on Thursday morning that Britain must be “incredibly careful” to avoid retaliation from the Kremlin.

He said that “we’ve got to guard against” the risk of reaction from Moscow, but suggested the deployment of weapons “ultimately will be a matter” for Kyiv as long as international law is upheld.

Storm Shadows are precision-guided cruise missiles with a firing range in excess of 155 miles.

Ukraine has said it needs to strike military targets inside Russia to defend itself and repel Russian attacks, and it is one of the main issues that will be discussed at the Nato summit.

Ruben Brekelmans, the Dutch defence minister, said the discussions were focused on extending the distance weapons can be used and whether Kyiv has permission to use them to strike Russian aircraft before they mount attacks on Ukrainian territory.

Mr Zelensky urged his Western allies to put an end to “all limitations” placed on donated weapon systems in a speech on the fringes of the Nato summit in Washington.

A host of Western governments recently dropped restrictions on their munitions to allow Kyiv to use them in counter-strikes inside Russia to halt its offensive into the Kharkiv border region.

But this has not stopped Moscow’s air force from freely dropping glide bombs on Ukrainian cities from the relative safety of distances around 50 miles behind the frontier.

“Imagine how much we can achieve when all limitations are lifted,” Mr Zelensky said. “Similarly, we can protect our cities from Russian glide bombs if American leadership makes a step forward and allows us to destroy Russian military aircraft on their bases. This will yield an instant result, and we are waiting for this step.”

There are hopes that the introduction of US-made F-16 fighter jets, armed with Amraam missiles, will be able to play a major role in limiting Russia’s aerial dominance, if granted permission to engage with Russian aircraft near the border.

The American missiles are said to have a range of about 75 miles, depending on the conditions during which they are fired.

“The F-16s will be flying in the skies of Ukraine this summer,” Antony Blinken, the US secretary of state, said on Wednesday. The jets “are on their way, the transfers happen as we speak”, he added.

Dick Schoof, the Dutch prime minister, told Mr Zelensky he would not “put any limitations” on use of F-16s donated by his government, in a meeting at the summit.

His defence minister later told The Telegraph that there were discussions between members of the F-16 coalition to ensure the aircraft can be used to its full potential.

“The discussions now are about the range that those munitions can be used in Russia,” said Mr Brekelmans. “I think that we should also have a discussion about… maybe we should, you know, not extend the range and that we should say Russian fighter jets – when they are operational from a longer distance – that it’s legitimate for Ukraine to target those aircraft.”

While Britain pledged any F-16s to Ukraine, its air-launched Storm Shadow missile will feature as part of the talks.

Police have released an image of a man after two suitcases filled with human remains and leaking blood were left on Clifton Suspension Bridge in Bristol.

A helicopter and the Coastguard are helping Avon and Somerset Police locate the man, who was taken to the bridge in a taxi.

He is described as black, with a beard and wearing a black Adidas baseball cap, black jeans, a black jacket and white trainers. He had a black backpack.

Officers were called at 11.57pm on Wednesday to reports of a man seen “acting suspiciously with a suitcase” on Clifton Suspension Bridge, Avon and Somerset Police said.

A spokesman said officers arrived at the bridge within 10 minutes but the man had already fled the area, “leaving the suitcase behind”. A second suitcase was located nearby a short time later.

The spokesman added: “Sadly, it’s believed the suitcases contain human remains. Our Major Crime Investigation Team has launched an investigation. Locating the man who left the suitcases and identifying the deceased are our priorities.”

Vicks Hayward-Melen, the acting Bristol Commander, described it as a “very disturbing incident”.

She said: “An immediate search of the area was carried out by officers on the ground, with the support of the National Police Air Service and HM Coastguard following the discovery of the suitcases. These searches remain ongoing.

“Initial enquiries have established that the man was taken to the bridge in a taxi. The vehicle has been seized, and the driver is helping us with our enquiries.” 

One of the three women killed in the Bushey crossbow attack was in a “controlling” relationship with the suspected killer, a close friend of two of the victims has said.

Louise Hunt, 25, was found with her mother Carol, 61, and sister Hannah, 28, after neighbours reported hearing screams. They had suffered serious injuries and were pronounced dead by paramedics a short time later.

John Hunt, the racing commentator, who had been working for the BBC at Lingfield Park racecourse in Surrey on Tuesday, returned home to discover the tragedy.

Kyle Clifford, the 26-year-old suspected killer, was detained on Wednesday night close to his home in Enfield, north London, following a huge manhunt.

Abdul Morsli, 28, from Harrow, a close friend of both sisters, said he believed Louise had been in a “controlling” relationship with Clifford last Christmas.

He said: “She was in love with him. They’d been together for just under a year, I think. Hannah was convinced that they’d get married one day, but there were issues with his controlling behaviour.

“I think Louise tried to keep it under wraps, but I know he didn’t like her staying out too late – even though they didn’t live together – and he really didn’t like her having male friends.”

Fighting back tears, he said Carol and John Hunt had taken him in five years ago when he needed somewhere to stay.

He said: “I lived with them for about three or four months when I was going through a few things and needed help. ‘They invited me into their home without hesitation. Carol treated me like her own son. She used to make me a meal every night, and John invited me to Royal Ascot two years ago.

“I’ve known Hannah since I was 13 and we were at school together. She was so lovely, genuinely an amazing person. She was from a beautiful family. They were so generous and welcoming. I can’t describe how wonderful they are.”

Police have yet to speak to Clifford, who is still under sedation in hospital, but have said they are not hunting anyone else in connection with the triple murder.

In one of her last social media posts before the murders, Louise Hunt shared a message praising women who had the courage to leave abusive relationships.

The message, on X, formerly Twitter, last week, came just a few days before she split with Clifford.

It said: “I admire women who leave. idgaf (I don’t give a f—) if you left after the 1st time or the 12th time I admire that s—! idgaf if ppl was calling you dumb for 11 years but in the 12th year you decided you was done. It takes A LOT of strength to break a tie. It takes A LOT of self love to choose yo self.”

She shared the message a few days before she ended her relationship with the suspected killer. A neighbour told The Telegraph that the circumstances of the break-up had left her so upset that she had crashed her car into a telegraph pole outside the family home.

Louise’s mother had reportedly told friends at the gym she attended at Bushey Grove Leisure Centre that her daughter was involved in a “messy break-up”. A friend told Mail Online: “Carol did not go into too much detail, but you could see she was concerned.”

Clifford, a former Queen’s Dragoon Guard, left the Army in 2022 and had taken work as a security guard. A former employer said they had had no communication with him since he left the company last July.

Amthal, a fire and security installation company based in St Albans, Herts, said in a statement: “Kyle Clifford was employed from Feb 22 2023 to July 20 2023. Since he departed from Amthal in July 2023, we have had no further communication with Mr Clifford.”

Mourners grieving Carol, Hannah and Louise Hunt continued to lay flowers at a police cordon throughout the day.

One message, signed “love Mia”, read: “The three strongest women to ever exist. You’ll always be remembered. I wish I could continue doing life with you Louise, my beautiful girlie.”

One of the street’s oldest residents, Betty, 91, described the Hunts as a “lovely, lovely family” who had helped buy food for her during the Covid pandemic. She said: “Everybody here is shattered at what’s happened. Shattered.”

Sir Keir Starmer has denied that Joe Biden is senile amid growing calls for the US president to stand aside.

The new Prime Minister, who met Mr Biden for the first time on Wednesday, said the 81-year-old was “absolutely” mentally agile and was “across all the detail” during their hour-long meeting in Washington.

On Wednesday, the actor George Clooney called on the president to withdraw from the 2024 election race, saying “the one battle he cannot win is the fight against time”.

But Sir Keir, in Washington for a Nato summit, said the criticism was misguided and that Mr Biden had shown “incredible leadership” and was “on good form” during their Oval Office meeting.

Asked by the BBC whether the president was “senile”, he said: “No – we had a really good bilateral yesterday, we were billed for 45 minutes, we went on for the best part of an hour, we went through a huge number of issues. At pace, he was actually on really good form.”

Pressed on whether Mr Biden was mentally agile, the Prime Minister said: “Absolutely, across all the detail. We were going up pace through a number of issues, which was really important to me, because obviously it was my first opportunity to have a bilateral like that. And he showed incredible leadership.”

Asked whether Clooney was unfair for suggesting the President was not up to it, he said: “I’m giving you my readout of the meeting… He was on good form.”

Asked by Sky News whether criticism of Mr Biden was misguided, Sir Keir said: “Yes. My own personal view is he was on good form. I was very keen obviously to discuss Ukraine, but there were many other issues that we got through last night”.

He said it was a matter for the American people who is elected president in November.

Mr Biden has stated that he is determined to remain as the Democratic Party’s candidate and beat Donald Trump, 78,.

But on Wednesday, Nancy Pelosi, the former House Speaker, said time was “running short” for Mr Biden to decide whether to stay in the race after his stumbling debate against Trump.

Later, Clooney said the president had won many battles in his career, “but the one battle he cannot win is the fight against time”.

The Oceans Eleven star wrote in the New York Times that it was “devastating to say it”, but the Joe Biden he met at a fundraising event three weeks ago was not the Biden of 2010. “He wasn’t even the Joe Biden of 2020,” he added. “He was the same man we all witnessed at the debate.”

The Oceans Eleven star wrote in the New York Times that it was “devastating to say it”, but the Joe Biden he met at a fundraising event three weeks ago was not the Biden of 2010.

“He wasn’t even the Joe Biden of 2020,” added the actor. “He was the same man we all witnessed at the debate.”

Another Hollywood star and fundraiser, Michael Douglas, said he was “worried” about Mr Biden’s electoral chances.

Rob Reiner, the director of When Harry Met Sally…, called on the president to stand down, saying:“Joe Biden has effectively served the US with honour, decency, and dignity. It’s time for Joe Biden to step down.”