EU’s foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas earlier was also dismissive of Putin’s “very cynical” calls for a ceasefire “to protect his parade, whereas they were actually still attacking civilians in Ukraine.”

And the former Estonian prime minister, too, was not particularly keen on Schröder as a mediator on Ukraine.

“If we give the right to Russia to appoint a negotiator on our behalf, that would not be very wise.

And second, I think Gerhard Schröder has been the high-level lobbyist for Russian state-owned companies, so it’s clear why Putin wants him to be the person so that actually he would be sitting on both sides of the table.”

Kallas also warned against broader Russian operations in Europe, warning that “clearly, our adversaries are not sleeping; so clearly, they want to increase the influence in Europe.”

“We unfortunately already see this in sports organisations, where, you know, Russians are let to compete like nothing has happened. And there are discussions there. We also saw this Venice Biennale where they are there like nothing has happened. So clearly they are working all the time and we have to be vigilant as well.”

UK government borrowing costs are creeping a little higher after a morning of rising political jitters.

The yield, or interest rate, on UK 30-year bonds is now up 8 basis points (0.08 of a percentage point) at 5.65%, up from 5.57% on Friday night. That’s higher than just before Keir Starmer’s speech this morning, when they were up about 5bps.

Benchmark 10-year bond yields have risen higher too – now up 6bps, having been 4bps higher earlier in the morning.

Rising bond yields indicate that bond prices have dropped, suggesting less appetite for UK debt and pushing up the cost of borrowing.

These increases comes as Labour MP, David Smith, has said Starmer should set a timetable for his departure and that the government neeed “to act faster, and be more radical”.

Update: Labour MP Catherine West, who announced a challenge to Starmer over the weekend, has now said she wants the prime minister to set a timetable of September for an orderly departure.

Susannah Streeter, chief investment strategist at Wealth Club, says there are concerns in the bond markets that a change of Prime Minister would prompt wider turmoil at the top of government, and less focus on fiscal rules.

Streeter writes:

“Keir Starmer’s address to the nation hasn’t done the trick of calming bond markets. There is still a sense of jitters playing out as concerns about political instability collide with inflationary fears prompted by the ongoing conflict in the Middle East. His speech was designed to project a ‘keep calm and carry on’ message, but the worry is that it lacks the real substance needed to keep Labour MPs on side.

Ten-year gilt yields have crept higher, nudging 5% once more, while longer-dated government debt remains hovering above 5.6%. They have not been at this level for a sustained period since the late 1990s.