Boris is activists’ firm favourite

BORIS Johnson is the overwhelming choice of party activists to be the next Tory leader, a poll suggests.

The survey for the Conservative Home website put Mr Johnson on 32.3 per cent. Former Brexit secretary Dominic Raab is in second place with 14.7 per cent.

Environment Secretary Michael Gove, the leading backer with Mr Johnson of the Leave campaign, is in third place on

.4 per cent. In a blow to his ambitions, Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt is ranked in fifth place with 6.4 per cent, behind ‘Other’. Home Secretary Sajid Javid is sixth with 4.7 per cent.

As the race to succeed Theresa May intensifies, Mr Hunt is set to embark on a high-profile trip to several African countries. Allies said he would take more than ten business leaders on the trip with him to contrast his business experience with Mr Johnson.