Supporters of Andrea Leadsom make bizarre march to Parliament as crucial Tory leadership vote gets underway
Conservative MPs decide as Andrea Leadsom and Michael Gove locked in battle to finish second behind Theresa May
SUPPORTERS of Andrea Leadsom made a bizarre march to Parliament this morning as the crucial Tory leadership vote got underway.
It comes as the bitter battle to be Britain’s next Prime Minister has been beset by accusations of backstabbing and vote-rigging.
The bizarre spectacle saw a group of MPs and supporters chant “what do we want – Leadsom for leader, when do we want her – now!” on a walk though Westminster.
They were travelling from a rally by Ms Leadsom, where she proclaimed: “Prosperity should be our goal, not austerity.”
She also said “let’s banish the pessimists” as she dismissed those say the economy is struggling post-Brexit.
The leadership contender, who finished second in Tuesday’s first round, said: “The pound is weaker, partly as a result of the markets being wrong on the result of the referendum, and partly on the expectation of further interest rate easing.
“But lower sterling is good for exports and makes inward investment more attractive. It means we may import less and buy more at home.
“The FTSE 100 is trading higher, and outperforming other global stock markets.”
Conservative MPs are taking part in a ballot to decide which two candidates will go to a vote of grassroots members – with Ms Leadsom and Michael Gove locked in a battle to finish second behind frontrunner Theresa May.
A senior Theresa May supporter claimed their camp was confident of winning the support of over 200 of her colleagues.
With little over three hours to go until the ballot closes, the insider said: “I think Theresa will be over 200 – pretty easily really.”
Separately, Jobs Minister Priti Patel tweeted her support for the Home Secretary in another hammer blow for her Brexit ally Michael Gove.
Ms Patel said: “Delighted to support Theresa May. Experience, vision and strong leadership for Britain.”
It comes after the Justice Secretary’s team insisted he was kept in the dark about a plot to get supporters of the Home Secretary to switch sides in order to block the surge of Mrs Leadsom.
Mr Gove’s campaign manager Nick Boles was forced into a humiliating apology after being caught pushing pro-May MPs to vote tactically to ensure his man made the final two.
He apologised, claiming “it does not reflect his views”, after a confrontation at last night’s hustings over the texts sent to scores of MPs.
The message said Mr Boles thought it was "overwhelmingly likely" Mrs May would triumph, but he was "seriously frightened" that if Ms Leadsom made the final two she could connect with members in the way Iain Duncan Smith had previously.
In The Sun today Mr Gove declares he is the only one who can provide ‘strong, clear and consistent’ leadership Britain needs.
“Be in no doubt, I have that plan, I have that vision, I will make sure Britain’s future is brighter outside of the EU,” he said.
“I am the only candidate who has both experience at the top levels of government and a bold vision for this country’s future.”
Mr Gove added: “I’ve got a plan which would mean that the government would help the entrepreneurs of the future build and grow their businesses here in the UK.
“So yes, we will have left the European Union – but we will be leading the world.”
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But Ms Leadsom is facing issues of her own, after being forced to publish her CV in a bid to clear up controversy over her past business roles following claims she has been exaggerating her experience.
The hustings also saw the energy minister say that she would not release her tax returns, as other candidates have, unless she made the run-off.
She was boosted this morning ahead of a speech she is giving on the economy with the endorsement of Lord Howard.
The former Tory leader said it doesn’t matter that she hasn’t served in the cabinet, saying “she’s in tune with the majority of people in this country”.
And he said his failure to back Mr Gove was based on the way he backstabbed Boris Johnson, and the anti-Leadsom texts from Mr Boles
Referring to unguarded comments recorded by Sky News by Tory former chancellor Ken Clarke in which he referred to Mrs May as "a bloody difficult woman", the Home Secretary joked that the next person to take that view of her would be Jean-Claude Juncker, the European Commission president.
The hustings came as Conservative MPs who support all three remaining leadership candidates are urging the party to speed up the contest so a new prime minister is chosen by the end of the month.
A group of around 30 MPs have signed a letter written by former Tory chairman Grant Shapps, which calls on the party to give members three weeks to pick a leader after the third place candidate is eliminated today.
A decision on the two contenders to go forward to a vote of around 150,000 Conservative members is expected at around 5pm.