Ben Wallace will not join the race to become a leader
The Secretary of Defense, who had been one of the first favorites, now says he does not want to run as a leader. Instead, he says his approach should continue to “keep this great country safe.”
After careful consideration and discussion with colleagues and family, I made the decision not to participate in the contest for the leadership of the Conservative Party. I am very grateful to all my fellow parliamentarians and wider MPs who have promised support. 1/2
– Rt. Hon Ben Wallace MP (@BWallaceMP) July 9, 2022
It hasn’t been an easy choice to make, but my focus is on my current job and keeping this great country safe. I wish the best of luck to all the candidates and hope that we will quickly return to focusing on the issues for which we are all elected. 2/2
– Rt. Hon Ben Wallace MP (@BWallaceMP) July 9, 2022
Updated at 13.43 BST
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Conservative MP Andrea Jenkyns was filmed sticking her middle finger on protesters outside Downing Street on Thursday after Boris Johnson’s resignation speech.
Since then, the minister has said she was “defending herself” after receiving death threats.
Minister Andrea Jenkyns puts her middle finger on crowds outside Downing Street – video
Updated at 5.30pm BST
Grant Shapps launched his leadership candidacy by telling the Sunday Times that he was ruling out a general election.
He said he would produce an emergency budget, ordering his chancellor to reduce personal tax to the most vulnerable and giving state support to companies with high levels of energy consumption.
He said:
I have not spent the last turbulent years conspiring or reporting against the Prime Minister. I haven’t been mobilizing a leadership campaign behind their backs. I tell you this, in spite of all its defects, and who does not have it? – I like Boris Johnson. Never, not for a moment, have I doubted his love for this country.
Shapps added:
It’s easy to criticize Boris after holding his head for years while he’s happy to benefit from his sponsorship. I’m glad I didn’t do that.
Although the skies darkened over his tenure as prime minister, often because of the mistakes he had made, he hoped he could regain it. Because by losing him, we would lose a man who makes a unique connection with people.
Grant Shapps announces Conservative leadership candidacy
Transport Secretary Grant Shapps has launched a candidacy for the Conservative Party leadership, the Press Association reported.
He said he would put an end to the “tactical government of an often distracted center.”
Secretary of State for Transportation Grant Shapps leaves 10 Downing Street. Photography: Anadolu / Getty Images Agency
Learn more about this story as we receive it.
Conservative MP Steve Baker, who has ruled out running for party leadership, has been setting out his reasons for supporting Attorney General Suella Braverman in his candidacy.
He told GB News:
In terms of experience, it is clear that she heads her own department and is the attorney general, so she is in the cabinet and advises on the law to all government departments. For me, I’ve been with Suella through hell and water, the moment that came when we had to decide if we would be the last people to oppose Theresa May’s deal and when I left staggering under pressure, Suella did not.
I still see her sitting with all the details like me, and absolutely determined. This country must be led by someone, as it has been before, someone with an absolutely fierce determination and ability to listen to others, authenticity, good character, charisma, and it has it all. I am excited to support him.
I believe in freedom because that is the best way to make the people of this country prosper. We will not go back to 1979, 1980 or 1990, we can only move forward. Margaret Thatcher said “there is no society,” but what she meant is that it is intangible.
What does it mean? It means social relationships and individuals and how they relate to each other. We need to move forward with someone who inspires others with a warm relationship, professionalism and responsibility. Whether at work, at home or in the family, we cannot return to thatcherism, we can only move forward with a new commitment to the values we know endure.
Steve Baker speaking to the media at College Green in front of the Houses of Parliament, London. Photography: Dominic Lipinski / PAHeather Stewart
Elections to the Conservative leadership appear to be open, with candidates from almost every ideological branch of the party. With a tory nation and fiscal conservatives, Brexiters and the rest, there will be a variety of views that parliamentarians and activists will take into account.
Here is a summary of the runners and runners, and what we know about their political and social positions.
A Boris Johnson spokesman said reports that he plans to step down as prime minister on Monday to run again for the Conservative leader are completely false.
Johnson resigned Thursday as leader of the Conservative Party, but said he intends to remain in office until his successor is elected, PA Media reported.
Speaking to Downing Street, he said:
It is now clearly the will of the parliamentary Conservative Party to have a new leader of that party and therefore a new prime minister.
And I agree with Sir Graham Brady, the chairman of our background MPs, that the process of electing this new leader should begin now and the timetable will be announced next week.
And today I have appointed a cabinet to serve, as I will, until there is a new leader.
Boris Johnson makes a statement at 10 Downing Street in central London on July 7, 2022. Photo: Daniel Leal / AFP / Getty Images
Updated at 16.05 BST
Michael Savage
In a large state hall in the heart of Downing Street, as they waited to deliver their fateful verdict on Boris Johnson, a group of cabinet ministers were forced to mingle uncomfortably with the prime minister’s closest allies.
The delegation had been growing slowly throughout Wednesday evening. Nadhim Zahawi, who had accepted the post of Chancellor less than 24 hours earlier, Home Secretary Priti Patel, Trade Secretary Anne-Marie Trevelyan, Cabinet Office Minister Kit Malthouse, Welsh Secretary Simon Hart and Transportation Secretary Grant Shapps were present at several points.
Even Simon Clarke, the Treasury minister and one of Johnson’s most loyal supporters since the early days of his leadership campaign, joined by phone. “Everyone in this room agreed that the game was over,” one of those present said. “Everyone was there to say that.”
Defense Minister Ben Wallace, who was ruled out of the Conservative leadership race today, has visited the military camp in the northwest where up to 10,000 Ukrainian soldiers will arrive for specialized military training.
Ben Wallace visits Ukrainian soldiers training at British military camp – videoMark Townsend
The Royal Navy is threatening to “move away” from Boris Johnson and Priti Patel’s plan to curb the number of ships carrying asylum seekers across the Canal, as official data show how spectacular the policy has been. counterproductive state.
Defense chiefs are said to be fed up with trying to enact the Prime Minister and Home Secretary’s quick implosion plan to use the army to control small boats on the Canal.
Data from the Ministry of Defense show that crossings have almost doubled since the army received the “primary” on the issue since mid-April compared to the first three months of this year.
Patel and Johnson were warned that the deployment of the Royal Navy could increase the number of crossings, but ignored expert advice because, according to internal sources, they wanted to look tough.
Summary
Here’s a quick rundown of today’s evolution as the Conservative Party leadership contest continues to take shape.
- Ben Wallace has announced that he will not stand to be the next leader. The defense secretary had been seen as a promising outsider in the race, but said he wanted to focus on his current job and keep the country safe.
- The contest’s first favorite, Rishi Sunak, has been criticized as a “traitor” for his resignation on Tuesday.
- Morley and Outwood MP Andrea Jenkyns said she was “defending herself” and did not apologize after yelling and sticking her middle finger at protesters Thursday outside Downing Street. She has been criticized by lawmakers from both parties, but in a statement said she had received death threats.
- A new prime minister could be appointed in the next two weeks, according to Andrew Bridgen. The MP said that if the 1922 committee, which chairs the Conservative parliamentary party, changed the rules and the last two candidates reached an agreement, Boris Johnson’s successor could be appointed in a fortnight.
- Kemi Badenoch has tossed her hat into the ring to be the next Conservative leader, saying the party needs an “agile center-right vision” needed to take on “the cultural establishment.”
- Jake Berry, head of the Northern Research Group’s pressure group, said he would not run to become a leader, despite suggestions from some of his parliamentary colleagues.
- Leadership candidate Tom Tugendhat has made his first presentation to members of the Scottish Conservatives, stressing the need for “serious and proven leadership” for the party to succeed in Scotland.
- Far from the annual union jamboree is the annual Durham Miners Gala today.
I will pass it on to my partner Tom Ambrose, who will keep you informed for the next few hours. Thanks for following.
Contradictory reports are emerging on Thursday about the scene off Downing Street, when Andrea Jenkyns called protesters and then stabbed them in the middle finger. In a statement earlier today in which he explained his actions, Jenkyns called them a “fine-grained mob.”
The Guardian’s chief political correspondent, Jessica Elgot, was among the …