The Scotsman

Who will succeed in a crowded

-

Sir Graham Brady ( 331): The now former chairman of the backbench 1922 Committee has maintained his impartiali­ty and confidenti­ality through months of coup plots by Tory MPS.

Yesterday Brady stood down from the role, saying he could not organise a leadership contest that he was considerin­g joining.

“I am considerin­g the approaches I have received and will make a decision in due course,” the former PR man said.

Boris Johnson ( 4- 5):

The former Foreign Secretary is the runaway favourite with the Conservati­ve membership, who will choose between the last two contenders after MPS whittle down the candidates in a series of ballots.

In the past few days, three other possible contenders have said they will not stand and thrown their support behind him: the sacked Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson, who can offer valuable experience as a former chief whip; Jacob Rees- Mogg, the chairman of the pro- Brexit European Research Group of Tory MPS; and backbenche­r Johnny Mercer, who has a high profile as a former soldier who has campaigned on behalf of Northern Ireland veterans.

Johnson has also raised £ 130,000 for his leadership campaign warchest, the largest amount of donations of any candidate. His challenge will be to convince enough fellow MPS to give him the chance to get into the final two – 105 must get behind him to guarantee a place in the membership ballot.

 ??  ??
 ??  ??

Newspapers in English

Newspapers from United Kingdom