Tugendhat enters Tory leadership race with hint he could leave ECHR

Shadow security minister Tom Tugendhat insisted he could win the next general election for the Conservatives.

Tom Tugendhat has launched his Tory party leadership bid (Danny Lawson/PA) (PA Archive)

Tom Tugendhat has become the second senior Tory to announce a leadership bid, indicating he would be prepared to quit the European Convention on Human Rights to protect the UK’s borders.

The shadow security minister, who joined James Cleverly in publicly declaring his leadership ambitions, insisted he could lead the Conservatives to victory at the next general election.

The battle for the future of the Conservative Party officially began on Wednesday night with the opening of nominations in the contest to replace Rishi Sunak following the Tories’ worst general election result.

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

Tom Tugendhat

Mr Tugendhat, who is viewed as a moderate within the Conservative ranks, insisted there was little to separate him from his rivals on the right on key issues.

Launching his leadership campaign in the Telegraph he denied the party would be split by a divisive contest, because on key issues including the ECHR, gender, taxes, defence and net zero all Tories shared the same “common sense” views.

“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.

“These are common-sense Conservative positions. They are non-negotiable for me and, I would hope, for anyone else who puts themselves forward.”

The Conservatives were reduced to just 121 seats as Rishi Sunak’s premiership ended in electoral disaster.

But Mr Tugendhat 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.”

Shadow home secretary James Cleverly was the first of the leadership contenders to announce they would stand and he is understood to be confident he has the support of the 10 MPs needed to enter the race.

There will potentially be a crowded field in the contest, which could trigger months of Conservative infighting as the party considers how to respond to its worst ever election result before the winner is announced on November 2.

Former home secretary Mr Cleverly told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme that despite the election drubbing, his party has been “the most successful political movement, I think, in human history”.

But recent achievements, including stabilising the economy and supporting Ukraine, were overshadowed by “a number of negatives”, he said.

“I think one of the reasons why the criticisms landed, and the good work didn’t get cut-through, is we’d spent too much time rowing amongst ourselves, which gave the impression – the wrong impression – but gave the impression that we were more focused on ourselves than serving the British people. So we have to get out of that habit.”

He said the Conservative Party needs to “expand our base of support” but when asked about a recent poll suggesting around half of Tory members are in favour of joining forces with Nigel Farage’s Reform UK, he said the party “doesn’t do mergers”.

Shadow communities secretary Kemi Badenoch is the favourite in the race, according to bookmakers.

Former work and pensions secretary Mel Stride, former home secretaries Suella Braverman and Dame Priti Patel and former immigration minister Robert Jenrick are also expected to launch leadership bids.

But 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.”

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.

Under plans drawn up by the 1922 Committee of backbench Tory MPs and the party board, nominations opened at 7pm, and close at 2.30pm on Monday July 29.

Contenders need a proposer, seconder and eight nominations to stand.

The parliamentary party will then narrow the field down to four, who will make their case at the Conservative Party Conference, which runs from September 29 to October 2.

The final two, picked by the parliamentary party, will then go to a vote of Conservative Party members in an online ballot that will close on October 31 with the result announced on November 2.

Liberal Democrat chief whip Wendy Chamberlain said the likely runners and riders were “a collection of failed ministers” and “it’s like a group of arsonists asking for a new box of matches”.