“Penny Mordaunt is the new favourite to become Conservative leader among grassroots activists, the latest polling has shown. Ms Mordaunt, the international trade minister, tops a new survey of Conservative Home readers – usually a reliable indicator of party mood – albeit by fewer than 10 votes, with 19.6 per cent. Kemi Badenoch, the former equalities minister running on a small-state, ‘anti-woke’ platform, is second (18.7 per cent), with former chancellor Rishi Sunak in third (12.1 per cent). Suella Braverman and Liz Truss place fourth and fifth.” – Daily Telegraph
Comment:
>Yesterday: ToryDiary: Our latest Next Tory Leader Survey. Mordaunt leads Badenoch by under ten votes in over eight hundred.
“Rishi Sunak will vow to bring the tax burden down at the official launch of his Tory leadership campaign on Tuesday, declaring it is a matter of “when, not if”. In an attempt to counter the attacks of rivals, the former chancellor will name cutting taxes as one of the three planks of his economic plan should he become prime minister. Lord Lamont, the Tory Treasury minister under Margaret Thatcher and later chancellor, also endorses Mr Sunak, saying “Rishi has the skill, determination and ideas to get us through”.” – Daily Telegraph
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Comment:
>Today:
“A rising star of the leadership contest has revealed how she had to fight woke civil servants to push through a ban on gender-neutral toilets. Kemi Badenoch told how Whitehall officials tried to thwart her recently announced plan to ensure all new public buildings should have separate bathrooms for men and women. She also said she had met doctors who were afraid to speak freely and teachers who were under pressure to stop using the word woman.” – Daily Mail
“My first job was at McDonald’s, flipping burgers and cleaning toilets so I had enough money to live on while studying part-time at college. Keeping people employed at this time is absolutely critical. Good jobs matter and that means jobs that pay well and add value to communities and society. One of the things that makes it hard for some people to get a good job is they demand costly degrees you actually don’t need, forcing people into debt. I’m an engineer and value real skills from solid training.” – The Sun
“It comes after Liz Truss last night warned the Tory Right it risks handing Rishi Sunak the keys to No10 unless it unites behind her. The Foreign Secretary’s allies urged her rivals on the Thatcherite wing of the party to end their campaigns and back her. The dramatic plea came as Priti Patel debated whether to join a crowded field of contenders from the Tory Right – it already includes Nadhim Zahawi, Suella Braverman and Kemi Badenoch. Jacob Rees-Mogg had been rumoured to be set to stand but last night ruled himself out, saying he did not want to ‘further fracture the Right’.” – Daily Mail
>Yesterday: Parliament: Next Conservative Leader. Who’s backing whom. Our working list. Sunak still leads as Tugendhat closes in on Mordaunt in second.
“Families must not be made to “pick up the bill” for the UK’s net zero drive, Nadhim Zahawi has said, as he vowed to temporarily scrap green energy levies if he becomes Prime Minister. Outlining his energy policy pitch to The Telegraph, the Chancellor and Tory leadership hopeful promised to keep the Government’s pledge to make the UK a neutral carbon emitter by 2050. But he said the push should “never hinder” the UK’s economic growth and signalled he wants to do more than Boris Johnson to shelter households from the cost.” – Daily Telegraph
More:
>Yesterday: ToryDiary: The Tory leadership election. Beware of candidates who only tell you what you want to hear.
“Sajid Javid has repeatedly refused to deny having used a tax haven and declined to say where he was tax resident while a non-dom. Javid warned that the Tories risked “electoral oblivion”, drawing comparisons with the 1990s, when Labour were more trusted on the economy. “Sleaze, scandal, internal warfare: we’ve seen this movie before and we know how it ends,” Javid told a campaign launch event. The former housing secretary promised a “massive” housebuilding programme, arguing: “The price is going up because there’s not enough homes.”” – The Times
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“Suella Braverman urged fellow MPs to vote for her because she loves Britain – rather than because she is ‘brown’. In a speech delivered to a packed room in London’s Churchill War Rooms, the Attorney General said: ‘Don’t vote for me because I’m a woman. Don’t vote for me because I’m brown. Vote for me because I love this country and would do anything for it. Vote for me because I have a clear vision and have experience working at the top of government. But most of all, vote for me because I’m a Conservative.’” – Daily Mail
“Priti Patel spent Monday locked in talks with Brexiteers as she wavered on whether to launch a leadership bid amid fears the Tory Right were botching their chance of defeating Rishi Sunak. Despite reports that she was going to go public on her leadership bid, the Home Secretary was still locked in meetings with her team late on Monday evening as sources said she was genuinely torn over whether to stand. She had earlier made an 11th-hour appeal to the European Research Group (ERG) of Tory Brexiteers in an attempt to secure their backing.” – Daily Telegraph
“Grant Shapps has kicked off his Conservative leadership campaign by calling for defence spending to increase to 3 percent of GDP. The Transport Secretary’s suggested figure is above the 2 percent figure NATO requires from its members. However, writing in The Times the Welwyn Hatfield MP argued that the Russian invasion of Ukraine had changed the security landscape in Europe “out of all recognition.” Mr Shapps claimed that outgoing Prime Minister and Conservative leader Boris Johnson “deserves respect” for his response to the Ukraine crisis.” – Daily Express
Comment:
“Britain will have a new Prime Minister by September 5, the chairman of the Conservative Party’s 1922 Committee Graham Brady announced today as he revealed the process that will select a new leader of the party. Once a new leader of the party is selected, their name will be presented to the Queen as the person able to form a new government and replace Boris Johnson as Prime Minister. Sir Graham said this evening that nominations to be leader of the Conservative Party will close on Tuesday.” – Daily Mail
Comment:
>Today: Rachel Wolf in Comment: Twenty questions for candidates in the Conservative leadership election
“Boris Johnson has not ruled out attempting to make a comeback should his successor’s government collapse, according to allies. The prime minister will not “fade into the background” after standing down but will stay on as a backbench Tory MP until the next election. One ally said Johnson’s successor is likely to struggle to cope with an even more divided party, particularly if Rishi Sunak, the former chancellor, wins the contest. Tories on the right wing of the party are opposed to his leadership and could revolt over Brexit, they said. Combined with a recession it could be enough to end a Sunak premiership.” – The Times
>Today: Audio: The Moggcast. Rees-Mogg says that Johnson should have the opportunity to stand again for the leadership if he wishes.