A total of nine candidates have officially declared their intention to be the UK’s next prime minister, with Foreign Secretary Liz Truss expected to launch her bid on Monday. The process for electing the next leader will be agreed at a special meeting of the 1922 executive committee of Tory MPs on Monday. It will also decide the threshold for candidates to pass on the ballot. A senior MP close to the committee said it was “likely” MPs would require candidates to secure the support of at least 10 per cent of the parliamentary party to get on the ballot. which is equivalent to 36 MPs. Another senior MP suggested that the limit could be 20 MPs. Such a high threshold is likely to immediately exclude lesser-known candidates who have fewer supporters. In the last Tory leadership contest held in 2019, candidates had to attract the support of just eight MPs to be on the ballot. A senior backbench MP warned: “There will be a big backlash if the nomination is 10 per cent. People want to have a wide range of candidates.”

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Nominations are expected to open on Tuesday, with the first round of voting taking place on Wednesday and a shortlist of two to be finalized before parliament goes into summer recess on July 21. The new prime minister will take office before the House of Commons returns on September 5. People close to Sir Graham Brady, chairman of the 1922 committee, said he wanted a “quick parliamentary stage to sort this out quickly. Graham wouldn’t want more than two or three rounds of selection.” According to bookmakers Ladbrokes Coral, Sunak is the frontrunner to be the next leader. It has received the highest number of endorsements so far, with 30 Tory MPs pledging their support. However, his opponents are mobilizing. A dossier titled ‘Get Ready for Rishi’ has been circulating among MPs, targeting him for his economic policies. “There is nothing conservative about Rishi Sunak’s ‘high tax, high spending’ agenda,” the paper said. “It’s time for the party to move forward decisively.” Sunak’s campaign said it was “solely focused on explaining to the country and the party why he is the best candidate to lead the country through what will be difficult times.” In a further sign of the outrage gripping the Conservative party, chancellor Nadhim Zahawi released a lengthy statement on Sunday describing as “spotty” reports that he was under investigation by the National Crime Agency and being investigated by HM Revenue & Customs. Jeremy Hunt on the BBC’s ‘Sunday Morning’ with Sophie Raworth © BBC/AFP via Getty Images He also supports the leadership, and some in his campaign believe the claims are coming from rival candidates. On Sunday, two former health secretaries, Sajid Javid and Jeremy Hunt, announced their candidacies, pledging to cut taxes. Javid, who was the first cabinet minister to quit the government in the events that led to the prime minister’s resignation as Tory leader on Thursday, has made tax cuts a central issue of his campaign. Javid and Hunt also pledged to cut corporation tax. While Hunt said he would introduce an immediate cut from 19p to 15p, Javid said he would reduce it by 1p a year to reach the same level. Penny Mordaunt, the trade secretary, launched a leadership bid on Sunday with an emphasis on being a team player. “Our leadership must change. It needs to be done a little less for the leader and a lot more for the ship,” he said.

Transport secretary Grant Shapps announced he was standing and tried to rally MPs who remain loyal to the outgoing prime minister. “It’s easy to criticize Boris after you’ve had your head down for years while you’re happy to benefit from his patronage,” he said. “I’m glad I didn’t do that.” Truss is expected to seek to differentiate itself from Sunak on the economy, promising tax cuts and supply-side reform. A Truss ally said: “She’s certainly not the candidate for continuity in the economy.” Truss will support “a clear vision for the economy based on conservative principles,” another ally said. It will focus on regulation and the UK’s departure from EU rules.