Boris Johnson wins third of votes in round one of Tory leadership election
Boris Johnson humiliated his competition in the first ballot of the Tory leadership race today.
The former foreign secretary was backed by 114 Tory MPs and is one step closer in his bid to seize the Tory crown and succeed Theresa May.
Mark Harper, Andrea Leadsom and Esther McVey failed to get the 17 votes required and was automatically kicked out of the contest.
The list of Tory leadership candidates has been slashed to seven.
While Johnson received a third of the votes, Jeremy Hunt came second with 43 backers and Michael Gove third with 37.
Results in alphabetical order:
Boris Johnson – 114
Jeremy Hunt – 43
Michael Gove – 37
Dominic Raab – 27
Sajid Javid – 23
Matthew Hancock – 20
Rory Stewart – 19
Andrea Leadsom – 11 (out)
Mark Harper – 10 (out)
Esther McVey – 9 (out)
This is a breaking news story… more to follow.
MP Peter Bone, a teller for the ballot, said: ‘Turn out was close enough to 100 per cent.’
Andrea Leadsom, Rory Stewart and Esther McVey were hanging around the committee room where the ballot was taking place and even posed for a selfie together.
Transport Secretary Chris Grayling confirmed he had voted for Johnson in the secret ballot.
He said Johnson was an ‘integral part’ of the Leave campaign and was the ‘right man to take us through the Brexit process to sort this out’.
MPs were told to bring ID and banned from bringing their mobile phones into the voting area amid strict security measures.
Who is running to be prime minister?
Boris Johnson
The leadership frontrunner said Britain must leave the EU by October 31, regardless of whether it had been able to negotiate a fresh deal with Brussels.
He insisted he did not want a no-deal but said it was essential that the Government prepared for that eventuality as a 'last resort'.
He cited his record as mayor of London, when he combined policies promoting social justice with support for business and financial services.
Sajid Javid
The Home secretary insisted he could change the image of the Tories across the country as he stressed his humble background as the son of an immigrant.
He said it was time to follow the Scottish Tories and 'leave the short term comfort zone and throw out central casting' by picking somebody different.
Mr Javid said the UK must prepare for a no deal, but insisted he could get an agreement through Parliament by October 31.
Branding Mr Johnson as 'yesterday's news', Mr Javid said voters wanted to hear the Tories talk about more than Brexit
Michael Gove
One of the leaders of the Vote Leave campaign, he said Brexit was an 'unashamedly personal' matter for him, although he would be prepared to delay beyond October 31 if negotiations were making progress.
Following the disclosure he took cocaine before entering politics, he sought to get his campaign back on track, taunting his rival and sometime ally Boris Johnson for pulling out of the last leadership contest.
The Environment Secretary said he would scrap VAT and replace it with a lower and simpler sales tax.
Jeremy Hunt
The Foreign Secretary said he was a 'serious leader' for a 'serious moment' in the country's history.
He warned the Tories would be 'annihilated' if they fought a general election without first delivering Brexit.
He said would be prepared to leave the EU without a deal, but signalled he could extend Brexit beyond October 31 if an agreement was in sight.
Dominic Raab
The former Brexit secretary said he was the 'conviction Brexiteer' with the 'discipline and focus' to get Britain out of the EU by October 31.
In what was seen as a sideswipe at Boris Johnson, he said 'bluff and bluster' would not deliver and refused to rule out suspending Parliament to get Brexit through.
On domestic policy, he said he would raise the employee's national insurance threshold to 'take the lowest paid out of payroll taxes altogether'.
Matt Hancock
The Health Secretary said he had the 'only credible plan' for Brexit which could get through Parliament.
He said no deal was not possible as MPs would prevent it and that he would go back to Brussels to negotiate a time limit to the Northern Ireland backstop.
He promised to raise the national living wage to more than £10-an-hour.
Rory Stewart
The International Development Secretary issued a vigorous warning against a no-deal Brexit, accusing proponents of peddling 'fairy stories'.
He said that if MPs were unable agree a way forward he could appoint a 'grand jury of citizens' to sit for three weeks to come up with a solution.
His launch included a strong personal attack on Boris Johnson, questioning whether he was the right person to take charge of Britain's nuclear deterrent.
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