Larry is a brown-and-white tabby cat rescued from the Battersea Dogs and Cats Home.
Larry the Cat, Chief Mouser of 10 Downing Street, has shared his thoughts on the recent UK election results. The beloved feline posted a picture of himself standing at a miniature podium, complete with a tiny microphone as if delivering a speech. Larry’s caption poked fun at the election outcome, saying, “The people have spoken and what they’ve said is mainly swear words aimed at the Tories.”
The post was a purr-fect jab at the Conservative Party’s defeat in the general election.
“The people have spoken and what they’ve said is mainly swear words aimed at the Tories”#GeneralElection2024pic.twitter.com/jHR2iaGKML
— Larry the Cat (@Number10cat) July 5, 2024
The UK’s Labour Party, led by Keir Starmer, secured a decisive victory with most seats in the House of Commons and ending 14 years of Conservative rule. Rishi Sunak, the outgoing Prime Minister, conceded defeat as several cabinet members lost their seats.
Larry is a brown-and-white tabby cat rescued from the Battersea Dogs and Cats Home. PM David Cameron and his wife chose him as a pet for their children.
Throughout the political turmoil of the past 14 years, Larry has remained a constant presence in Downing Street, serving under five Conservative prime ministers since 2011. The cat has since completed 13 years in the Parliament home.
Last year, Larry celebrated his 12 years, saying how he was appointed Chief Mouser to the Cabinet Office “12 years ago” and boasted about outlasting “four Prime Ministers and have been in charge here longer than Thatcher, Blair, Churchill and Disraeli.”
With the current change in government, Larry will soon welcome his first Labour prime minister, Keir Starmer. The departure of Rishi Sunak also means Larry will bid farewell to Nova, the fox-red labrador retriever.
Earlier, Rishi Sunak’s wife Akshata Murty revealed the behind-the-scenes dynamics of Downing Street’s furry residents. “Nova has mixed emotions about (living here) because she sometimes doesn’t get on with Larry the Cat. And they’ve had some heated exchanges and Larry’s come out on top,” she said.
In November 2022, Larry voiced his displeasure on X when Rishi Sunak’s family moved in with Nova, saying, “ANOTHER dog?! Bring back Liz Truss…”
This wasn’t the first time Larry had had a problem with canine companions in Downing Street. In 2019, when Boris Johnson’s Jack Russell Cross, Dilyn, joined the household, Larry tweeted, “Confirmation that Downing Street is going to the dogs….”