Howard: our dark days are over

Tory leader-elect: I will lead from centre; Clarke may yet issue a challenge

Michael Howard staked his claim to the Tory crown yesterday with a promise to lead the party "from its centre" and back to government.

Less than 24 hours after Iain Duncan Smith was ousted, the former home secretary confirmed his candidacy. Almost all of his opponents had already declared that they would not run against him.

But one, Kenneth Clarke, announced last night he had not yet decided whether to mount a challenge. Mr Clarke's defiant message, which gave hope to his supporters, was issued after a 105-minute meeting with Mr Howard, his former cabinet colleague, in central London.

The scale of the task facing Mr Howard if he becomes leader was made clear in a Mori poll released last night, which showed the Tories trailing Labour by an 11-point margin. It put Labour on 42 per cent, the Tories on 31 per cent and the Liberal Democrats on 20.

At a packed media launch at the Saatchi Gallery in London, Mr Howard had earlier invited Mr Clarke to back his leadership with a warning that "the party will expect" all its wings to unite now.

With the next general election possibly 18 months away, Mr Howard made clear that the only route back to Downing Street was by appealing to the centre ground that has been vacated by his predecessors. Clearly aware of his unpopularity during the 1992-97 Tory government, he sought to reinvent himself as a leader who would "preach a bit less and listen a lot more".

A Conservative Party led by Mr Howard would represent "all Britain and all Britons" while it transformed itself into a movement that was "broad in appeal and generous in outlook", he said. Adopting the more measured tone advocated by modernisers such as Michael Portillo, he stressed that he would give credit to the Government and never indulge in "narrow partisan opportunism".

Mr Howard nevertheless underlined what would be a main line of attack on voters' apparent lack of trust in Tony Blair, emphasising he would "always tell the truth". He said: "Rigorous honesty, measured criticism, realistic alternatives: only that way can we revive people's trust in politics."

In a calculated pitch to younger voters and deprived communities, Mr Howard declared that it was his "mission" to restore the Tories as an urban as well as a rural party. "There can be no no-go areas for a contemporary Conservative Party," he said.

He would discuss with Mr Clarke "the best way in which we can work together for the future of our country and the future of our party". The shadow Chancellor also made clear that he intended to soothe the many party activists upset by the removal of Mr Duncan Smith at Westminster.

In line with suggestions from the party's ruling board, all members would be given a ballot to ratify his leadership even if he was unopposed for the post, he said.

Mr Duncan Smith, although he had previously pledged not to get involved in the choice of his successor, called on the party to rally round one candidate. "I very much hope that - as tonight seems likely - my successor is chosen quickly so that we can all get behind the leader. The new leader will have my absolute loyalty," he said. "And I encourage all those members of the voluntary party who made me the first leader of the party elected by the grass roots to also give that leader their whole-hearted support."

Mr Blair welcomed the apparent end of the Tory leadership crisis, but said that voters could now concentrate on the party's "extreme" policies.

The Prime Minister said that he was looking forward to the prospect of Mr Howard's selection as Tory leader, because it would present voters with a "stark" choice between Labour and the Conservatives. He praised Mr Howard as a "good performer" in the Commons, but said that he was not worried about facing his "old adversary". He said that the Tories' policies would now become a problem for them.

"Where they stack up they are extreme and where they are not extreme they don't stack up. And I think that will become very, very obvious when you get into a policy debate," he said.

Michael Ancram, Tim Yeo and Mr Portillo ruled out standing against Mr Howard yesterday. William Hill, the bookmakers, stopped taking bets on him becoming the next Tory leader. Mr Portillo, who was defeated in the leadership contest in 2001, said: "I definitely won't be standing. I don't think I have nearly enough support in the parliamentary party and unless you have got a clear prospect of winning, there really is no point in being a candidate."

David Davis, the first possible contender to announce that he would stand aside for Mr Howard, said that he had made his decision to avoid divisions that could "cripple" the party.

It is understood that Mr Clarke attempted to secure from Mr Howard a promise that pro-euro moderates would be given senior posts in the Shadow Cabinet. Mr Howard underlined the strength of his campaign when he published a list of 89 MPs backing him, including almost the entire shadow front bench and more than half the parliamentary party.

Thursday is the deadline for anyone wanting to stand against Mr Howard.