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| BBC to host debate between Tory leadership candidates | |
| (32 minutes later) | |
| The Conservative leadership hopefuls have been invited to take part in a televised debate on the BBC to test their views on Brexit and other policies, as an 11th candidate to succeed Theresa May entered the race. | |
| The event, hosted by Emily Maitlis, will take place in mid-June featuring all the candidates left in the race at that point – likely to include Boris Johnson, Dominic Raab, Jeremy Hunt and Michael Gove. | |
| The Tory contest will formally start on 10 June but all except for the leading four to six candidates are expected to drop out after the first couple of rounds of voting by Conservative MPs. | The Tory contest will formally start on 10 June but all except for the leading four to six candidates are expected to drop out after the first couple of rounds of voting by Conservative MPs. |
| Calls for Tory Islamophobia inquiry as equality body launches Labour antisemitism investigation – live news | Calls for Tory Islamophobia inquiry as equality body launches Labour antisemitism investigation – live news |
| A second event, in a BBC Question Time format, will give the leading two candidates the chance to submit themselves to audience questions. It will be hosted by Fiona Bruce during the final phase of the process in which Conservative members will pick who should lead the party out of the final shortlist of two. | A second event, in a BBC Question Time format, will give the leading two candidates the chance to submit themselves to audience questions. It will be hosted by Fiona Bruce during the final phase of the process in which Conservative members will pick who should lead the party out of the final shortlist of two. |
| The same two candidates will subsequently be interviewed by the political journalist Andrew Neil in separate standalone programmes. | The same two candidates will subsequently be interviewed by the political journalist Andrew Neil in separate standalone programmes. |
| Fran Unsworth, the director of BBC News and Current Affairs, said: “The decision being made by Conservative party members will profoundly affect us all, so it feels right that BBC audiences get a chance to see the candidates debate with each other, and that we scrutinise the various policy proposals they will be standing on.” | Fran Unsworth, the director of BBC News and Current Affairs, said: “The decision being made by Conservative party members will profoundly affect us all, so it feels right that BBC audiences get a chance to see the candidates debate with each other, and that we scrutinise the various policy proposals they will be standing on.” |
| Before this Friday’s deadline for applications, an 11th candidate, James Cleverly, was preparing to announce he had joined the race for the party leadership. | Before this Friday’s deadline for applications, an 11th candidate, James Cleverly, was preparing to announce he had joined the race for the party leadership. |
| Cleverly, a junior Brexit minister and former deputy party chairman, is expected to formally make his announcement on Wednesday, but a grassroots website called “Let’s All Win with James Cleverly” has appeared before that event. | Cleverly, a junior Brexit minister and former deputy party chairman, is expected to formally make his announcement on Wednesday, but a grassroots website called “Let’s All Win with James Cleverly” has appeared before that event. |
| Kit Malthouse, a former deputy mayor to Johnson, was also a surprise addition to the race, having decided he was the man to deliver the so-called “Malthouse compromise” on Brexit, which was named after him. The compromise – replacing the Irish backstop with alternative arrangements, or negotiating a longer-term transition to a no-deal exit – has been backed by Conservative leavers and remainers but was rejected as unworkable by Downing Street. | Kit Malthouse, a former deputy mayor to Johnson, was also a surprise addition to the race, having decided he was the man to deliver the so-called “Malthouse compromise” on Brexit, which was named after him. The compromise – replacing the Irish backstop with alternative arrangements, or negotiating a longer-term transition to a no-deal exit – has been backed by Conservative leavers and remainers but was rejected as unworkable by Downing Street. |
| He raised eyebrows on Tuesday by suggesting the government could buy up lamb chops to feed to schoolchildren in the event of no deal. | He raised eyebrows on Tuesday by suggesting the government could buy up lamb chops to feed to schoolchildren in the event of no deal. |
| Malthouse told LBC: “Something like 80,000 tonnes of sheep meat is exported every year. Now if we go out with no deal, they think that will be significantly affected, so what do we say to them? Do we say, look, what can we do to make sure that the lamb makes it on to British dining room tables, that probably equates to four to five lamb chops per person per year – could we use it in hospitals and in schools or could we compensate farmers for the disruption this would cause?” | Malthouse told LBC: “Something like 80,000 tonnes of sheep meat is exported every year. Now if we go out with no deal, they think that will be significantly affected, so what do we say to them? Do we say, look, what can we do to make sure that the lamb makes it on to British dining room tables, that probably equates to four to five lamb chops per person per year – could we use it in hospitals and in schools or could we compensate farmers for the disruption this would cause?” |
| The pair join Johnson, Raab, Hunt, Gove, Andrea Leadsom, Esther McVey, Sajid Javid, Matt Hancock and Rory Stewart in a crowded field of candidates. | The pair join Johnson, Raab, Hunt, Gove, Andrea Leadsom, Esther McVey, Sajid Javid, Matt Hancock and Rory Stewart in a crowded field of candidates. |
| Others who may yet declare include the hardline Eurosceptic Steve Baker, Stephen Barclay, the Brexit secretary, Penny Mordaunt, the defence secretary, the Treasury minister Jesse Norman, the former development secretary Priti Patel and Graham Brady, until recently the chair of the 1922 Committee. | Others who may yet declare include the hardline Eurosceptic Steve Baker, Stephen Barclay, the Brexit secretary, Penny Mordaunt, the defence secretary, the Treasury minister Jesse Norman, the former development secretary Priti Patel and Graham Brady, until recently the chair of the 1922 Committee. |
| It comes as No 10 confirmed that May had promised the EU that the UK would not seek to reopen the withdrawal agreement, as a condition of its extension of article 50, until the end of October. The promise, written into the article 50 extension, undermines the pledges of Conservative leadership candidates to secure a renegotiation in the coming months. | It comes as No 10 confirmed that May had promised the EU that the UK would not seek to reopen the withdrawal agreement, as a condition of its extension of article 50, until the end of October. The promise, written into the article 50 extension, undermines the pledges of Conservative leadership candidates to secure a renegotiation in the coming months. |
| Asked about the legal status of the promise, a No 10 spokesman said: “The legal text that was approved at EU council with the prime minister was that we will not be seeking to reopen the withdrawal agreement. That was part of the process under which the extension was approved until 31 October.” | Asked about the legal status of the promise, a No 10 spokesman said: “The legal text that was approved at EU council with the prime minister was that we will not be seeking to reopen the withdrawal agreement. That was part of the process under which the extension was approved until 31 October.” |
| Rory Stewart hits out at Tory rivals over 'suicide bomber' remark | Rory Stewart hits out at Tory rivals over 'suicide bomber' remark |
| But Hunt, the foreign secretary, who is the leading candidate among MPs, stressed his confidence in being able to achieve a renegotiation during interviews on Tuesday. He said: “The only solution to the extremely difficult situation we are in, and I don’t want to pretend there is an easy way through this, is to change the withdrawal agreement.” | But Hunt, the foreign secretary, who is the leading candidate among MPs, stressed his confidence in being able to achieve a renegotiation during interviews on Tuesday. He said: “The only solution to the extremely difficult situation we are in, and I don’t want to pretend there is an easy way through this, is to change the withdrawal agreement.” |
| He added: “We need to have a new negotiating team, with someone from the Democratic Unionist party, the [Tory hard-Brexit] European Research Group, someone from Scotland and Wales so that the union side of these issues is properly thought through.” | He added: “We need to have a new negotiating team, with someone from the Democratic Unionist party, the [Tory hard-Brexit] European Research Group, someone from Scotland and Wales so that the union side of these issues is properly thought through.” |
| He also wrote a Telegraph article saying that a no-deal Brexit would be “political suicide”, as he did not believe parliament would allow the UK to leave without a deal on 31 October, and it would force an early election. | He also wrote a Telegraph article saying that a no-deal Brexit would be “political suicide”, as he did not believe parliament would allow the UK to leave without a deal on 31 October, and it would force an early election. |
| Johnson, the frontrunner, has said he would seek to renegotiate May’s deal and leave at the end of October whether or not he has managed to achieve that. But he has not been specific about whether this would involve opening the withdrawal agreement. | Johnson, the frontrunner, has said he would seek to renegotiate May’s deal and leave at the end of October whether or not he has managed to achieve that. But he has not been specific about whether this would involve opening the withdrawal agreement. |
| Raab, who launched a campaign video emphasising his commitment to “fairness”, has said he would like to agree a “legally binding exchange of letters to give the UK a clear exit from the so-called backstop”. However, it is not clear whether this would involve reopening the text of the withdrawal agreement. | Raab, who launched a campaign video emphasising his commitment to “fairness”, has said he would like to agree a “legally binding exchange of letters to give the UK a clear exit from the so-called backstop”. However, it is not clear whether this would involve reopening the text of the withdrawal agreement. |
| Other candidates, including Gove, have also said they want to renegotiate with the EU to make the withdrawal agreement more acceptable to Eurosceptics. | Other candidates, including Gove, have also said they want to renegotiate with the EU to make the withdrawal agreement more acceptable to Eurosceptics. |
| One person close to a Brexiter candidate also claimed any idea that the withdrawal agreement was closed forever was simply not credible. He said the UK’s promise not to reopen the withdrawal agreement should not be over-interpreted as the European council could change the terms and conditions if it wanted to. | One person close to a Brexiter candidate also claimed any idea that the withdrawal agreement was closed forever was simply not credible. He said the UK’s promise not to reopen the withdrawal agreement should not be over-interpreted as the European council could change the terms and conditions if it wanted to. |
| With May having promised to resign as Tory leader on 7 June, her official spokesman acknowledged on Tuesday that the withdrawal bill delivering her deal was no longer going to be brought forward. The spokesman said: “We now have to reflect on the fact that we are in a different position.” | With May having promised to resign as Tory leader on 7 June, her official spokesman acknowledged on Tuesday that the withdrawal bill delivering her deal was no longer going to be brought forward. The spokesman said: “We now have to reflect on the fact that we are in a different position.” |
| He indicated that it was not likely that even uncontroversial elements of the bill – such as guaranteeing EU citizens’ rights – would be brought forward for a vote in the Commons, as it would be for a new prime minister to find a way forward. | He indicated that it was not likely that even uncontroversial elements of the bill – such as guaranteeing EU citizens’ rights – would be brought forward for a vote in the Commons, as it would be for a new prime minister to find a way forward. |
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