Tory leadership race – live: Tugendhat wants to replace Sunak as nominations open

Danny Kruger said he was backing Robert Jenrick to unite the Tories.

The co-chair of the New Conservatives, a right-wing grouping of MPs, told The Sun’s Never Mind The Ballots: “The challenge we have got is to win back those voters we have lost to Reform, but also hold the centre of the party together and convince those wavering voters in the middle who might have left to the Lib Dems or even Labour that we are actually a responsible and competent party of government.

“And I think Rob manages that. He’s got the competence and the personality and the temperament, also he has got the right policies.”

Writing in the Telegraph the shadow security minister said: “I am not just running to be the next leader of the Conservative Party.

“I am running to be the next Conservative prime minister.

“That is what this leadership election is all about: winning. We can’t serve the British people if we don’t win the next general election. We can win it. We must win it. I can lead the party to that victory.”

Tom Tugendhat indicated he would be prepared to leave the European Convention on Human Rights if it was necessary to restore control over the UK’s borders.

The shadow security minister, seen as a candidate from the moderate wing of the party, insisted the leadership contest would not split the Tories.

“Some people think the Conservative leadership election will be divisive, splitting the party,” he wrote in the Telegraph.

“That’s wrong because actually, there’s a long list of things this election isn’t about. The ECHR. Gender. Tax rates. Defence spending. Net zero.

“These are things that aren’t up for debate in this leadership election. Why not? Because politics is about principles and all Conservatives are guided by our basic principles here.

“We know that if institutions do not serve the British people and make it harder to control our own borders, then we will have to exempt ourselves from them, or leave their jurisdiction. We know what a woman is. We all want lower taxes. We all know national security must come before Treasury spreadsheets. We all know that energy security and household bills come first.”

According to polling by Savanta carried out between July 19 and 21, Mr Tugendhat is the most popular potential contender among both the public, at minus three points, and 2024 Conservative voters, at 21 points.

Dame Priti is the least popular, at minus 28 points and seven points respectively, according to the research.

Mr Cleverly is second in the running, Savanta’s findings suggest, at minus nine points with the public and 19 points among 2024 Conservative voters.

Shadow health secretary Victoria Atkins, who had been the subject of leadership speculation, ruled herself out in a Telegraph article.

She said: “I am flattered that many people in the House and beyond have asked me to stand but it has never been my intention to run in this contest.

“Until polling day three weeks ago, I had one of the biggest jobs in government, on which I was completely focused. I now want to help the next leader unite, rebuild and renew our party.”

Sky News are reporting that at least seven MPs are set to contest for the Tory leadership after their teams collected the paperwork needed to nominate someone to replace Rishi Sunak.

The likely candidates are expected to be James Cleverly, Priti Patel, Robert Jenrick, Kemi Badenoch, Tom Tugendhat, Mel Stride and Suella Braverman.

The official nominations do not close until Monday so more candidates are likely to join the race.

Sky are reporting that senior Tory MPs believe Mel Stride and Suella Braverman to be the least likely to win the contest.

James Cleverly has ruled out a merger between the Conservative Party and Nigel Farage’s Reform UK if he becomes the next leader.

“The Conservative Party doesn’t do mergers. The simple truth is that we have got a series of principles, “ Mr Cleverly told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme.

“We believe in civil liberty. We believe in free enterprise. We believe in efficient but modest size of the state, lower taxes… those are our principles, that is our agenda. What we need to do is expand our base of support.”

A Conservative MP said he will nominate Dame Priti Patel to be the next Tory leader.

Sir Alec Shelbrooke said the former home secretary is “respected on all wings of the party”.

He told GB News: “I will be nominating Priti Patel because I think Priti has not just the pragmatic approach to all the issues but she was also there, brought into CCHQ, by Cecil Parkinson in 1997 about how to rebuild the Conservative Party after that defeat.

“You get this pattern in government, that after a long period of time in government, the structure starts to fall down. You think it would do the opposite, but it doesn’t. You’re so busy on governing that the structure falls down. That is task number one.

“Priti has had senior roles and she’s respected on all wings of the party, and I think that’s an important point. And it comes back to we’ve got to have a conservative leader representing the Conservative Party and get away from these different gangs that have formed and have been fighting with each other.”