Boris Johnson says he will not stand in Tory leadership contest

[dutchman]

Move means Rishi Sunak looks almost certain to be PM



Boris Johnson will not stand in the Conservative leadership race, leaving Rishi Sunak very likely to enter No 10.

The former prime minister had not formally declared but he had told supporters he wanted to run, drumming up backing from seven cabinet ministers – Jacob Rees-Mogg, James Cleverly, Anne-Marie Trevelyan, Nadhim Zahawi, Alok Sharma, Simon Clarke and Chris-Heaton Harris.

After cutting short a Caribbean holiday, Johnson spoke to rivals Sunak and Penny Mordaunt in an attempt to persuade them to get on board with his attempted political comeback.

However, Johnson has said he is not running after only making it to about 60 declared backers by Sunday evening – well short of the 100-MP threshold required to make it on to the ballot.

The former prime minister claimed that he did have the required support but had decided not to run as “this would simply not be the right thing to do” as “you can’t govern effectively unless you have a united party in parliament”.

He said that due to the failure to reach a deal with Sunak and Mordaunt, “I am afraid the best thing is that I do not allow my nomination to go forward and commit my support to whoever succeeds.”

“I believe I have much to offer but I am afraid that this is simply not the right time,” the former prime minister said.

His statement released on Sunday night added that he had 102 backers. “I believe I am well placed to deliver a Conservative victory in 2024 – and tonight I can confirm that I have cleared the very high hurdle of 102 nominations, including a proposer and a seconder, and I could put my nomination in tomorrow. There is a very good chance that I would be successful in the election with Conservative party members. But in the course of the last days I have sadly come to the conclusion that this would simply not be the right thing to do.”

[dutchman]

Rishi Sunak to become first British Asian PM as Penny Mordaunt bows out



Rishi Sunak will become the UK's first British Asian prime minister after his only remaining rival pulled out of the Tory leadership contest.

Nearly 200 Conservative MPs publicly backed the former chancellor ahead of the nomination deadline on Monday.

Commons Leader Penny Mordaunt dropped out after failing to secure enough support among MPs.

It means Mr Sunak will succeed Liz Truss and become the youngest PM for more than 200 years.

Mr Sunak - a 42-year-old practising Hindu - is expected to take office in the coming days now the result of the Tory leadership contest is known.

Mr Sunak has addressed Tory MPs after the result was announced by Sir Graham Brady, the chairman of the 1922 committee of backbench Conservatives.

In the speech - which took place behind closed doors - Mr Sunak told them this was going to be a tough period and ruled out an early general election, MP Simon Hoare said.

The King will appoint Mr Sunak, who will take over from Ms Truss following her resignation just 45 days into her tumultuous premiership last week.

Mr Sunak's coronation, in effect, as Tory leader caps a rapid political comeback by the former chancellor after he lost out to Ms Truss in the last leadership contest during the summer.

Ms Truss - whose tax-cutting agenda Mr Sunak dismissed as "fairytale economics" - tweeted to congratulate him and offer her "full support".

Her successor will take office at a time of economic crisis and pressure on public finances, exacerbated by Ms Truss's mini-budget, which has been mostly scrapped.

[dutchman]

I don't see how his ethnicity is relevant but typical of the BBC they had to make it the headline.

[rebbonk]

Sunak is not the person to unite the party or the country.

I foresee the collapse of the Tory party as we currently know it.

[dutchman]

Labour tells MP Nadia Whittome to delete Rishi Sunak tweet



Labour has ordered MP Nadia Whittome to delete a tweet saying Rishi Sunak becoming prime minister "isn't a win for Asian representation".

The Nottingham East MP posted after Mr Sunak was this week confirmed by Conservative MPs as the UK's first British Asian prime minister.

Her tweet triggered heavy criticism and was later deleted.

A spokesman for Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer has now confirmed she was instructed to remove it.

She had tweeted to say Mr Sunak was a multimillionaire who had, as chancellor, cut taxes on banks while living standards dropped in the UK and added: "Black, white or Asian: if you work for a living, he is not on your side".

Sir Keir's spokesman stressed that Rishi Sunak becoming the first British Asian prime minister was a "great thing" and something the country "should be proud of".

A spokesperson for Ms Whittome told the BBC she would not apologise for the tweet and had not been asked to do so by the party.

Labour has confirmed it is not expecting her to apologise and it is understood the party now considers the matter closed.

In a statement Ms Whittome's office said: "Like Rishi Sunak, Ms Whittome is second-generation British Indian.

"Ms Whittome was pointing to Rishi Sunak's record as chancellor to demonstrate that effective political representation of British Asian communities - and the interests of all working people - is about far more than the ethnicity of the prime minister.

"Following a discussion with the Labour whips, it was agreed that Ms Whittome would delete the tweet."

[dutchman]

It's not the first time she's fallen foul of the party leadership and something tells me it won't be the last:

Nadia Whittome sacked after opposing veterans bill