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Conservative leader: Who might succeed David Cameron? Conservative leader: Who might succeed David Cameron?
(2 days later)
David Cameron has said he intends to stand down as Conservative Party leader and prime minister following the UK's decision to leave the EU. His successor as leader will be elected by party members with the result on 9 September. Five Conservative MPs have been confirmed as candidates. David Cameron is standing down as Conservative Party leader and prime minister following the UK's decision to leave the EU. His successor as leader will be elected by party members with the result on 9 September.
Five Conservative MPs put themselves forward as candidates although one has been eliminated and another has dropped out, leaving three contenders.
Conservative leadership election rulesConservative leadership election rules
The party's 1922 committee, made up of backbenchers, will oversee the contest. Candidates need the support of at least two MPs to be able to stand. Nominations closed at midday on 30 June.The party's 1922 committee, made up of backbenchers, will oversee the contest. Candidates need the support of at least two MPs to be able to stand. Nominations closed at midday on 30 June.
As there are more than two candidates, a series of secret ballots will be held every Tuesday and Thursday from 5 July, until the list is whittled down to two. As there were more than two candidates, a series of secret ballots is being held to get the list is whittled down to two.
In each ballot of the party's 330 MPs, the MP with the least support will be eliminated. In each ballot of the party's 330 MPs, the MP with the least support is eliminated. The first ballot was on Tuesday and Liam Fox came last. Stephen Crabb came fourth and also dropped out.
The two remaining candidates will then go forward to a vote of the entire Conservative membership. MPs are voting on Thursday to decide which two of the three remaining candidates will then go forward to a vote of the entire Conservative membership. We should know which two have made it at about 16:30 BST.
The winner of that vote will become the new Conservative leader and prime minister. This graphic shows how the process unfolds with multiple candidates. The winner of the vote of party members, announced on 9 September, will become the new Conservative leader and prime minister. This graphic shows how the process unfolds with multiple candidates.
Stephen Crabb Theresa May
One of the rising stars of the Conservative Party, and the first Conservative cabinet minister for generations to sport a beard, the 43-year-old has launched a leadership bid on a joint ticket with Business Secretary Sajid Javid. One of the longest-serving home secretaries in history, Mrs May - who turns 60 later this year - has long been mentioned as a potential future leader of the party.
Launching his campaign, he promised to heal the "bad blood" caused in his party by the referendum. The former Welsh secretary, who was born in Scotland, also spoke of the need to bring the United Kingdom together following the result, and said controlling immigration was "a red line" in Brexit negotiations. She is now seen as the frontrunner, having won the support of 165 MPs in the first ballot - more than all the other candidates combined.
Mr Crabb has a back story to which many Tory MPs are attracted. Raised by a single mother on a council estate, the Welsh politician has spoken openly about his family's dependence on benefits and the importance of work, education and his Christian faith in promoting self-reliance and economic independence. Mrs May is regarded as one of Whitehall's toughest and shrewdest operators and is being touted by her supporters as the candidate with the experience and know-how needed to deal with the fallout from the vote to leave the EU.
After becoming an MP in 2005, Mr Crabb was promoted to the Cabinet in 2014 as Welsh secretary. His profile went up a notch earlier this year when he took over as work and pensions secretary following Iain Duncan Smith's resignation. She entered Parliament in 1992 and in the fallow years after the Conservatives' 1997 landslide defeat, achieved notoriety by famously saying the Conservatives were referred to by some as the "nasty party".
It remains to be seen whether this opportunity comes too early and whether his support for Britain to remain in the EU will hold him back. The MP, who revealed in 2013 that she has type 1 diabetes, was praised for her unflappable handling of the often problematic Home Office brief although her wider political appeal has yet to be tested.
Where he stands on Brexit: Campaigned for Remain but now says: "The result was for the UK to leave the European Union. There can be no stepping back from that. It's a clear instruction to the government. There can be no attempt to dilute it, to sidestep it. And there will be no second referendum." While coming out for Remain during the EU referendum, Mrs May maintained a relatively low profile during the campaign, enhancing her potential appeal to MPs on the other side of the debate.
Mr Crabb has set out three aims for the EU negotiations: "One: controlling immigration, and for us this is a red line. The one message that came through louder than any other in the vote last week is that the British people want to control immigration. Two: it is vital that we seek to achieve as close an economic relation with the EU as we have now. Three: the end of the supremacy of EU law." Where she stands on Brexit: Backed Remain campaign but says vote to come out must be respected: "Brexit means Brexit... There must be no attempts to remain inside the EU, no attempts to rejoin it through the back door and no second referendum." Mrs May also said there should be no general election before 2020 and no "emergency" Brexit budget - and that she would abandon the target of eliminating Britain's Budget deficit by the end of the decade, a day before the chancellor himself abandoned it.
Read more: Stephen Crabb profile Setting out her priorities for Brexit negotiations, she said "it must be a priority to allow British companies to trade with the single market in goods and services but also to regain more control of the numbers of people who are coming here from Europe". "Any attempt to wriggle out of that, especially from leadership candidates who campaigned to leave the EU by focusing on immigration, will be unacceptable to the public."
Tory contender Crabb pledges £100bn fund
Liam Fox
The former defence secretary, 54, has thrown his hat into the ring for a second time. Mr Fox, a former GP, came a close third in the 2005 leadership contest which saw David Cameron emerge as the victor.
But his cabinet career was cut short in 2011 following a lobbying row, which led to his resignation. Mr Fox was found to have breached the ministerial code over his working relationship with his friend and self-styled adviser Adam Werrity.
He has been a forceful voice for the UK leaving the EU on the backbenches but also for Conservative unity after the poll.
BBC assistant political editor Norman Smith said Mr Fox would pitch himself as the Brexit candidate, but not the divisive Brexit candidate.
Where he stands on Brexit: "I do not believe there is room for membership of the single market if it entails free movement of people. Those who voted to leave the EU would regard it as a betrayal and frankly they would be right. We do not need to be part of the single market to sell into it. Countries like the United States manage to do that very well. It is in our mutual interests to have a free and open trade relationship with our European partners but we cannot accept the concept of free movement of people as its cost."
Read more: Liam Fox profile
Liam Fox backs EU exit by 2019
Michael Gove
Unlike Mr Johnson, the 48-year-old has gone out of his way in the past to put a limit on his personal ambitions, even going so far as to suggest that he was not equipped to do the job of prime minister.
The former Times journalist, who entered Parliament in 2005, has been a close personal friend of David Cameron and George Osborne and was a key figure in the party's modernisation that led to its return to power in 2010.
He subsequently became a reforming, if controversial, education secretary and is regarded as one of the party's intellectual heavyweights.
The justice secretary's decision to back the Leave side was one of the key turning points in the campaign and although it is said to have strained his relations with Mr Cameron, he is still respected on both the Remain and Leave wings of the party and is likely to be a pivotal figure in the coming months.
Where he stands on Brexit: "The British people voted for change last Thursday... they want Britain to leave the European Union and end the supremacy of EU law. They told us to restore democratic control of immigration policy and to spend their money on national priorities such as health, education and science instead of giving it to Brussels. They rejected politics as usual and government as usual. They want and need a new approach to running this country."
He said "huge challenges" but also "huge opportunities" lay ahead for the UK.
He ruled out a snap general election if he becomes PM - and he said he would abandon Chancellor George Osborne's target of eliminating Britain's budget deficit by 2020. Mr Osborne himself has since abandoned the target.
He said he would wait until at least until 2017 to kick off the two-year process of negotiating the UK's withdrawal by invoking Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty.
"I will only trigger it after extensive preliminary talks ... so I have no expectation that Article 50 would be triggered in this calendar year," he said.
Read more: Michael Gove profile
Gove 'standing out of conviction not ambition'
Andrea LeadsomAndrea Leadsom
The 53-year-old former banker and fund manager was one of the stars of the Leave campaign, giving a composed performance as she took her place alongside Boris Johnson in its TV debating team. The 53-year-old former City banker and fund manager was one of the stars of the Leave campaign, giving a composed performance as she took her place alongside Boris Johnson in its TV debating team.
A former district councillor, she became MP for South Northamptonshire in 2010 and - after serving as a junior Treasury minister and as a member of the Treasury select committee - she was made a junior minister in the energy and climate change department in May last year.A former district councillor, she became MP for South Northamptonshire in 2010 and - after serving as a junior Treasury minister and as a member of the Treasury select committee - she was made a junior minister in the energy and climate change department in May last year.
Announcing her decision to stand for the party leadership, she tweeted: "Let's make the most of the Brexit opportunities!"Announcing her decision to stand for the party leadership, she tweeted: "Let's make the most of the Brexit opportunities!"
Following Boris Johnson's exit from the race, her stock has risen hugely with many of Mr Johnson's supporters transferring their support to her, enabling her to come second in the first round of voting with 66 votes.
But question marks have been levelled about her level of experience in her previous City career and as a minister, her position on the EU - she said in 2013 that leaving the EU would be a disaster - and her family's tax affairs. She has said she will publish her tax returns if she makes it into the final two.
Where she stands on Brexit: She has described the referendum result as "a huge opportunity for our great country". She believes in scrapping free movement and wants to do free trade negotiations with the rest of the world.Where she stands on Brexit: She has described the referendum result as "a huge opportunity for our great country". She believes in scrapping free movement and wants to do free trade negotiations with the rest of the world.
Mrs Leadsom told Sky News: "My personal view very genuinely is the next leader is someone who has to deliver on the promise of the referendum because they can see the huge advantages and they believe in them. I think it's very difficult for somebody who campaigned to stay in, who thinks that there will be disaster if we leave to suddenly turn it around and start believing we can make a go of it."Mrs Leadsom told Sky News: "My personal view very genuinely is the next leader is someone who has to deliver on the promise of the referendum because they can see the huge advantages and they believe in them. I think it's very difficult for somebody who campaigned to stay in, who thinks that there will be disaster if we leave to suddenly turn it around and start believing we can make a go of it."
Read more: Andrea Leadsom profile Michael Gove
EU citizens in UK are not bargaining chips - Leadsom The 48-year-old justice secretary has gone out of his way in the past to put a limit on his personal ambitions, even going so far as to suggest that he was not equipped to do the job of prime minister.
Theresa May So it was a shock, verging on a political earthquake, when the former Times journalist and Leave campaigner abandoned his support for Boris Johnson and said he would stand for the leadership himself.
One of the longest-serving home secretaries in history, who turns 60 later this year, has long been mentioned as a potential future leader of the party. Mr Gove has spoken of his "burning desire" to change the country but many of Mr Johnson's supporters did not take kindly to his spurning of their man and Mr Gove could only finish third in the first ballot of MPs, securing 48 votes.
Mrs May is one of Whitehall's toughest and shrewdest operators. In the fallow years after the Conservatives' 1997 landslide defeat, she famously said the party was referred to by some as the "nasty party". Mr Gove, who entered Parliament in 2005, has been a close personal friend of David Cameron and George Osborne and was a key figure in the party's modernisation but those relations are said to have been strained by his decision to campaign to leave the EU.
The MP was praised for her unflappable handling of the often problematic Home Office brief - regarded as something of a poisoned chalice - although her wider political appeal has yet to be tested. He subsequently became a reforming, if controversial, education secretary and is regarded as one of the party's intellectual heavyweights. He ruled out a snap general election if he becomes PM - and he said he would abandon Chancellor George Osborne's target of eliminating Britain's budget deficit by 2020. Mr Osborne himself has since abandoned the target.
While coming out for Remain, Mrs May - who revealed in 2013 that she has type 1 diabetes - maintained a relatively low profile during the campaign, meaning that she could potentially appeal to MPs looking around for an "anyone but Boris" candidate, before Mr Johnson pulled out of the race. It remains to be seen whether Mr Gove has burnt too many bridges to make it to the final two.
Where she stands on Brexit: Backed Remain campaign but says vote to come out must be respected: "Brexit means Brexit... There must be no attempts to remain inside the EU, no attempts to rejoin it through the back door and no second referendum." Mrs May also said there should be no general election before 2020 and no "emergency" Brexit budget - and that she would abandon the target of eliminating Britain's Budget deficit by the end of the decade, a day before the chancellor himself abandoned it. Where he stands on Brexit: "The British people voted for change last Thursday... they want Britain to leave the European Union and end the supremacy of EU law. They told us to restore democratic control of immigration policy and to spend their money on national priorities such as health, education and science instead of giving it to Brussels. They rejected politics as usual and government as usual. They want and need a new approach to running this country."
Setting out her priorities for Brexit negotiations, she said "it must be a priority to allow British companies to trade with the single market in goods and services but also to regain more control of the numbers of people who are coming here from Europe". "Any attempt to wriggle out of that, especially from leadership candidates who campaigned to leave the EU by focusing on immigration, will be unacceptable to the public." He said he would wait until at least until 2017 to kick off the two-year process of negotiating the UK's withdrawal by invoking Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty. "I will only trigger it after extensive preliminary talks ... so I have no expectation that Article 50 would be triggered in this calendar year," he said.
Read more: Theresa May profile Stephen Crabb - pulled out
May says voters want more than 'Brexit PM' One of the rising stars of the Conservative Party, and the first Conservative cabinet minister for generations to sport a beard, the 43-year-old launched a leadership bid on a joint ticket with Business Secretary Sajid Javid.
However, the work and pensions secretary pulled out of the race after coming fourth in the first ballot, amassing 34 votes. He then signalled he would be supporting home secretary believing she was the candidate most capable of uniting the party and the country.
In his campaign, Mr Crabb who was born in Scotland, spoke of the need to bring the United Kingdom together following the referendum result, and said controlling immigration was "a red line" in Brexit negotiations.
Raised by a single mother on a council estate, Mr Crabb - who became an MP in 2005 - has spoken openly about his family's dependence on benefits and the importance of work, education and his Christian faith in promoting self-reliance and economic independence.
Mr Crabb was promoted to the Cabinet in 2014 as Welsh secretary and later succeeded Iain Duncan Smith at work and pensions. While praising his qualities, many felt the opportunity came too early and his support for Britain to remain in the EU held him back.
Where he stands on Brexit: Campaigned for Remain but now says: "The result was for the UK to leave the European Union. There can be no stepping back from that. It's a clear instruction to the government. There can be no attempt to dilute it, to sidestep it. And there will be no second referendum."
Mr Crabb has set out three aims for the EU negotiations: "One: controlling immigration, and for us this is a red line. The one message that came through louder than any other in the vote last week is that the British people want to control immigration. Two: it is vital that we seek to achieve as close an economic relation with the EU as we have now. Three: the end of the supremacy of EU law."
Liam Fox - eliminated
The former defence secretary, 54, threw his hat into the ring for a second time after coming a close third in the 2005 leadership contest.
However, he was eliminated in the first round of voting after finishing bottom with 16 votes. He then said he would be transferring his support to home secretary Theresa May.
He has been a forceful voice for the UK leaving the EU on the backbenches but also for Conservative unity after the referendum.
His cabinet career was cut short in 2011 following a lobbying row, which led to his resignation. Mr Fox was found to have breached the ministerial code over his working relationship with his friend and self-styled adviser Adam Werrity
Where he stands on Brexit: "I do not believe there is room for membership of the single market if it entails free movement of people. Those who voted to leave the EU would regard it as a betrayal and frankly they would be right. We do not need to be part of the single market to sell into it. Countries like the United States manage to do that very well. It is in our mutual interests to have a free and open trade relationship with our European partners but we cannot accept the concept of free movement of people as its cost."
Who has ruled out a leadership bid?Who has ruled out a leadership bid?
Boris JohnsonBoris Johnson
The former mayor of London was immediately installed as the bookies' favourite to be the next occupant of Downing Street when David Cameron announced he was standing down.The former mayor of London was immediately installed as the bookies' favourite to be the next occupant of Downing Street when David Cameron announced he was standing down.
But he shocked supporters and foes alike when he used an event at which he had been expected to announce his candidacy to say that he would not be standing. But he shocked supporters and foes alike when he used an event at which he had been expected to announce his candidacy to say that he could not provide the leadership and unity required and would not be standing.
The entry of his fellow Leave campaigner Michael Gove into the race may have been behind his decision, but Mr Johnson did not say who he was going to back in the contest. His withdrawal came hours after the last-minute entry into the race of Michael Gove, who had previously backed the mayor of London and was masterminding his campaign.
The 52-year-old journalist-turned-Conservative politician is one of the most familiar faces in British politics, his unconventional political style and unique brand of charisma making him a household name. But Mr Gove said he had reluctantly come to the conclusion that the 52-year-old journalist-turned-Conservative politician, one of the most familiar faces in British politics, was not up to the job of being prime minister.
Long thought to harbour ambitions to be prime minister, his rivalry with David Cameron - both are products of Eton and Oxford - has been the subject of much speculation over the years. Long thought to harbour ambitions to be prime minister, Mr Johnson has now said he is backing Andrea Leadsom.
Mr Johnson, who spent eight years in City Hall before re-entering Parliament last year, backed the winning horse in the EU referendum fight although some in the party questioned his reasons for doing so.
While he is regarded as being an electoral asset - his ratings in London's mayoral elections exceeded his party's - some Conservative MPs doubted he had the right temperament and political judgement for the top job, particularly given the uniquely trying circumstances in which the next leader will take office.
Jeremy HuntJeremy Hunt
The health secretary, who joined Parliament in 2005 and is politically close to David Cameron, was "seriously considering" running for the leadership of the Conservative Party.The health secretary, who joined Parliament in 2005 and is politically close to David Cameron, was "seriously considering" running for the leadership of the Conservative Party.
But on the day nominations closed he announced he would be backing Theresa May's candidacy instead.But on the day nominations closed he announced he would be backing Theresa May's candidacy instead.
He said: "I have decided that now is not the right time for me to run for the leadership - though I remain completely committed to ensuring we secure our position as a great trading nation with sensible controls on migration.He said: "I have decided that now is not the right time for me to run for the leadership - though I remain completely committed to ensuring we secure our position as a great trading nation with sensible controls on migration.
"I believe that Theresa May has the strength, judgement and values to deliver those things. She is the right choice to lead Britain in a challenging period and will make a truly outstanding prime minister.""I believe that Theresa May has the strength, judgement and values to deliver those things. She is the right choice to lead Britain in a challenging period and will make a truly outstanding prime minister."
The 49-year-old has previously said he expected the health brief "to be my last big job in politics" but has since said: "I said it might be... things change in politics very, very rapidly." The 49-year-old has previously said he expected the health brief "to be my last big job in politics" but has since said: "I said it might be... things change in politics very, very rapidly.
He has had a somewhat bumpy cabinet career. He survived pressure to resign as culture, media and sport secretary following claims of an inappropriate level of contact between himself, his advisers and News Corporation, before and during its takeover bid of BSkyB.
Mr Hunt insisted he acted with "total integrity" during the bid process.
As health secretary, he has overseen many changes to the NHS but more recently he has been embroiled in a protracted dispute with the British Medical Association over the introduction of new contracts for junior doctors in England.
Mr Hunt - who campaigned for Remain during the EU referendum - has suggested that the Brexit deal the UK strikes with the EU should be put to the people.
He said his preference would be for a general election, with a manifesto commitment to back a deal that secures free trade but controls movement of people.
Nicky MorganNicky Morgan
The education secretary said she was "actively considering" whether to throw her hat into the ring, saying it would "be good" to have a woman in the final two on the ballot paper but has now decided to throw her weight behind Michael Gove.The education secretary said she was "actively considering" whether to throw her hat into the ring, saying it would "be good" to have a woman in the final two on the ballot paper but has now decided to throw her weight behind Michael Gove.
On the centre-left of the party, she was a strong supporter of the campaign to stay in the EU, saying referendum result showed a "divided" country and said the Conservatives need to bring it back together. She has also urged the party to make the "positive case" for immigration. On the centre-left of the party, she was a strong supporter of the campaign to stay in the EU, saying the referendum result showed a "divided" country and said the Conservatives need to bring it back together.
And she said the Conservatives need to make "a big bold offer" to younger voters, many of whom are "disillusioned" by Brexit, and called for votes for 16 and 17-year-olds. She has also urged the party to make the "positive case" for immigration. And she said the Conservatives need to make "a big bold offer" to younger voters, many of whom are "disillusioned" by Brexit, and called for votes for 16 and 17-year-olds.
In a statement, she said the Conservative Party had to "present a confident, positive and optimistic platform for our country's future in which this Party appeals to the centre ground of British politics".
She said the next leader "must have the skill and credibility to put together the right team to renegotiate our exit from and future relationship with Europe and explain the final terms to the British people," adding that "the right person to do that is Michael Gove."She said the next leader "must have the skill and credibility to put together the right team to renegotiate our exit from and future relationship with Europe and explain the final terms to the British people," adding that "the right person to do that is Michael Gove."
George OsborneGeorge Osborne
The chancellor has said he will not enter the contest to succeed David Cameron as Conservative leader, saying he does not believe he is the right person to unite the party. The chancellor has said he will not enter the contest to succeed David Cameron as Conservative leader, saying he does not believe he is the right person to unite the party. He has also yet to indicate who he will support.
Previously, many commentators believed Mr Cameron's right-hand man and political soulmate yearned to move the short distance to No 10 from 11 Downing Street - where the 45-year-old has spent the last six years as chancellor. Many commentators believed Mr Cameron's right-hand man and political soulmate yearns to move the short distance to No 10 from 11 Downing Street - where the 45-year-old has spent the last six years as chancellor.
Both Gordon Brown and John Major made similar journeys, but Mr Osborne would have faced formidable challenges if he was to follow them.
Although he has a strong power base in Parliament - so-called "friends of George" occupy many of the seats around the Cabinet table - his stock among backbenchers on the right of the party has never been so low and his fortunes have been closely entwined with Mr Cameron's.Although he has a strong power base in Parliament - so-called "friends of George" occupy many of the seats around the Cabinet table - his stock among backbenchers on the right of the party has never been so low and his fortunes have been closely entwined with Mr Cameron's.
While many admire his handling of the economy, there were already question marks before the EU referendum about his political judgement following U-turns over disability benefit cuts, Sunday trading reforms and school academies. His high-profile backing of the Remain cause, which culminated in his warning that there would have to be a tax-raising emergency Budget in the wake of a Brexit vote, meant he'd have had a long way to go to win back the Eurosceptic side of the party.
And his high-profile backing of the Remain cause, which culminated in his warning that there would have to be a tax-raising emergency Budget in the wake of a Brexit vote, meant he'd have had a long way to go to win back the Eurosceptic side of the party.
John BaronJohn Baron
Mr Baron, who represents Basildon and Billericay in Essex, said he had been asked to consider running for Tory leader and was taking soundings but was not among the official candidates when nominations closed.Mr Baron, who represents Basildon and Billericay in Essex, said he had been asked to consider running for Tory leader and was taking soundings but was not among the official candidates when nominations closed.
The 57-year-old was instrumental in pushing the Conservative leadership into committing to the referendum, with a letter to the prime minister, signed by more than 100 MPs, followed by a rebel amendment to the 2013 Queen's Speech.The 57-year-old was instrumental in pushing the Conservative leadership into committing to the referendum, with a letter to the prime minister, signed by more than 100 MPs, followed by a rebel amendment to the 2013 Queen's Speech.
After studying at Cambridge University he joined the Army and later worked in the City of London.After studying at Cambridge University he joined the Army and later worked in the City of London.
Mr Baron is a former shadow health minister who resigned from the front bench in 2003 to vote against the Iraq War. He also voted against military intervention in Syria last year.Mr Baron is a former shadow health minister who resigned from the front bench in 2003 to vote against the Iraq War. He also voted against military intervention in Syria last year.