How is the race for prime minister shaping up? Political correspondent Daniel Hewitt reports Labor says Boris Johnson is “running scared” after rejecting their motion for a vote of no confidence in the government, a move the party describes as “unprecedented”. Leader Sir Keir Starmer earlier confirmed he would table a motion for tomorrow’s vote – which could trigger a general election if the Tories lose – but the government is not allowing it to happen. A Labor spokesman said: “This claptrap government is running scared and refusing to allow time to debate Labour’s motion of no confidence. “This is completely unprecedented. Once again, the Tories are changing the rules to protect their own awful mates. All Tory leadership candidates should denounce this gross abuse of power to protect a discredited Prime Minister.” The government is rejecting time for a no-confidence vote in the Commons because Labour’s motion was not tabled in the normal way and added wording for a lack of confidence while the prime minister remained in office, ITV News understands. Sources say Labour’s proposal is against convention, so the vote is being rejected and would have passed if tabled in the normal way. Senior Labor backbencher Chris Bryant said Prime Minister Johnson was a “coward” to reject the proposal. The news came with Rishi Sunak moving forward in the race to become prime minister after winning the support of some of his former cabinet colleagues. Mr Sunak has already guaranteed his place on the ballot for Wednesday’s vote by securing the support of at least 42 Tory MPs, but only two others have passed the 20 mark. Trade Secretary Penny Mordaunt, Foreign Secretary Liz Truss and backbencher Tom Tugendhat have topped 20 nominations so will join Mr Sunak, but some of the others appear to be struggling. Transport Secretary Grant Shapps dropped out of the race on Tuesday morning after failing to secure enough public support from Tory MPs to go ahead, and left the burden to Mr Sunak. Rehman Chishti, a newly appointed foreign secretary who is largely unknown outside Westminster, also dropped out after failing to secure a single nomination. The senior minister said on Twitter that he chose to back Mr Sunak because he has the “ability and experience” to become prime minister. It leaves ten candidates vying to replace Prime Minister Johnson, but it is likely that more Tory MPs will drop out of the race by tonight. Ballots for Tory MPs will be taken today and any candidate who fails to win 20 or more nominations from their peers will be out of the running. Want a quick and special update on the biggest news? Listen to our latest podcasts to find out what you need to know… Who will join Sunak, Mordaunt, Truss and Tugendhat on the ballot? Former Equality Minister Kemi Bandenos, who officially launched her campaign on Tuesday, is close to crossing the line and looks likely to do so by the end of the day. Chancellor Nadhim Zahawi, former foreign secretary Jeremy Hunt and former health secretary Sajid Javid are all behind, but still have a chance of winning enough support to progress. Mr Javid’s team says it is confident it will win several nominations by the end of the day, including Attorney General Suella Braverman. Any candidate who does not get at least 30 votes on Wednesday will be forced out. A second vote will follow on Thursday with further votes taking place next week until the shortlist of candidates is whittled down to the final two – who will then proceed to a postal vote of party members. The final two will then spend the summer campaigning around the country before the winner is announced on September 5. Speculation was rife that Home Minister Priti Patel would join the race, but she ruled herself out just hours before nominations closed on Tuesday evening. She did not endorse any of the candidates. Cabinet colleagues Jacob Rees-Mogg and Nadine Dorries have thrown their support behind Mrs Truss, saying she is a “strong” supporter of Brexit that will provide continuity for those who want Prime Minister Johnson to remain. Labor is planning a vote of no confidence in the government With Prime Minister Johnson seeking to remain in No 10 until a successor is appointed, Labor plans to table a motion of no confidence in the government in a bid to get rid of him sooner. Confirming his plans, Opposition Leader Sir Keir told the shadow cabinet: “The Labor Party is passing a vote of no confidence in this caretaker prime minister and his government. “The Tory party has finally concluded that the Prime Minister is unfit for office, that was blindingly obvious a long, long time ago. He is leaving because his own party has concluded that he cannot be trusted. “They can’t now let him hang around for weeks and weeks and weeks until September 5. It would be intolerable for the country.” As things stand, it appears that Labour’s request for time to debate and vote on the proposal is being rejected. It would have left Tory MPs to make a difficult decision. Many have said publicly that Mr Johnson does not have their support and should go, but if they vote with Labour, it could trigger a general election, which many polls suggest the Tories will lose. The vote would require a simple majority to find a winner. If the vote is passed and the Tories vote, Parliament is likely to be dissolved and a general election called. Alternatively, opposition parties could attempt to form a minority government on the basis that they could win a vote of confidence in Parliament, but this is unlikely. Rishi Sunak is getting support from former Cabinet colleagues as he leads the race His race favorite, Mr Sunak, who was quick to announce his leadership bid with a slick video on Friday last week, clearly did a lot of work to drum up support before officially announcing his bid. The release of his campaign video was immediately followed by a number of senior Tories announcing their support for him. The latest to support the former chancellor is Matt Hancock, the former health secretary who was forced to resign after a photo of him kissing a colleague was published. This came after Transport Minister Sapps dropped out of the race to support Mr Sunak. Mr Shapps said: “Many thanks to my team for helping to put my leadership bid together in literally no time! “Among a field of brilliant candidates, I spoke with @RishiSunak who I believe has the ability and experience to lead this country.” Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab also backed Mr Sunak to become prime minister. Introducing Mr Sunak at his campaign launch, Raab said: “While others are talking, Rishi this month delivered the biggest tax cut for working people in a decade. He did it because he is a true Conservative.” Mr Sunak hit out at rival candidates when he launched his campaign, with the former chancellor the only candidate not to promise swift tax cuts. He suggested their tax plans were not “credible” as he said he would only reduce them once inflation was under control. The MP for Richmond in Yorkshire said: “It is not credible to promise much more spending and lower taxes. “I have had to make some of the hardest choices of my life as chancellor, particularly how to deal with our post-Covid debt and borrowing. I’ve never hid from them, I certainly won’t pretend now that the choices I made and the things I voted for somehow weren’t necessary. “While that may be politically inconvenient for me, it’s also the truth. Like the fact that once we catch inflation, I’m going to lower the tax burden. It’s a matter of when, not if.” Who is still in the running to replace Boris Johnson?
Rishi Sunak, former chancellor Nadhim Zahawi, current chancellor Liz Truss, Foreign Secretary Sajid Javid, former Health Secretary Suella Braverman, attorney general Kemi Badenoch, Minister for Equality Tom Tugendhat, backbencher Jeremy Hunt, former Secretary of State for Health and Foreign Affairs Penny Mordaunt, Trade Secretary Rehman Chishti, Foreign Minister
