Show only key events Please enable JavaScript to use this feature Pat McFadden, the shadow chief secretary to the Treasury, has written to Nadhim Zahawi, challenging him to provide more clarity about his tax and financial affairs, my colleague Heather Stewart reports.
IMF official tells Tory leadership candidates using extra borrowing to fund tax cuts would be a mistake
Rishi Sunak, the former chancellor, stands out in the Conservative leadership contest because he is the only candidate strongly opposed to increasing borrowing to fund immediate tax cuts. As the voice of fiscal orthodoxy, it is perhaps unsurprising that his stance is supported by the International Monetary Fund, whose UK head Mark Flanagan told the BBC: “I think debt-financed tax cuts in this point would be wrong. “ Flanagan said it would be better for the UK to invest in services that would promote long-term growth. He said: The UK has a below average tax rate relative to the rest of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development. You can’t have it both ways. At some point you have to decide, do we want to invest in the climate transition? Do we want to invest in digitization? Do we want to invest in skills for the public? Well, if you do, you need the resources to do it. And the way to realize those resources is to raise the tax rate a little bit.
Tory MPs to vote in third ballot, with Rishi Sunak buoyed by early poll
Good morning. Tonight Conservative MPs will vote in the party’s third leadership vote, and two televised debates over the weekend mean Rishi Sunak, the former chancellor, starts the week looking even more certain of taking one of the two final spots. ballot for members. Who will get the other is more uncertain, but after Friday’s debate it didn’t seem entirely impossible that Kemi Badenoch (4th in the last round of voting) could beat Liz Truss (3rd) and Penny Mordaunt (2nd), who were both amazing. unimpressive. Both improved noticeably last night, especially Truss, and now she needs to feel a little more confident to overtake Mordant and take second place in the final vote. The Conservative Party has let members choose leaders from a shortlist of two since 2001 (when Iain Duncan Smith won) and normally by the time the shortlist of two is chosen it is clear that one candidate is likely to win. This time the outcome will be more uncertain. Pollsters, and the website ConservativeHome, polled party members on how they would vote in one-on-one contests. ConHome figures from yesterday suggested Truss would beat Sunak. But the same figures suggest he would beat him by just seven points, despite having a 17-point lead over him last week, meaning opinion is highly fluid and the campaign is changing tracks. Opinium has now published the full results of the early poll conducted after last night’s debate. It suggests that Sunak was seen as doing better in the debate and that Truss improved more than Friday. We asked more than 1000 voters to watch tonight’s leaders’ debate and then asked them what they thought about it. The results…🧵 — Opinium (@OpiniumResearch) July 17, 2022 Sunak came out on top in terms of who performed best overall, with 24%. It was followed by Tugendhat with 19%, Mordaunt with 17%, Truss with 15% and Badenoch with 12%. pic.twitter.com/FxapExClVv — Opinium (@OpiniumResearch) July 17, 2022 The results are much closer than in Friday’s debate, when Tugendhat was the clear winner. He has dropped 17 points on this result, with Mordaunt and Truss having the highest overall score. pic.twitter.com/AjQbkd9mPr — Opinium (@OpiniumResearch) July 17, 2022 Among Conservative voters the top 3 were:SunakMordauntTruss Among Labor Party voters, the top three were:SunakTugendhatMordaunt Among swing voters the top 3 were:SunakTugendhatMordaunt pic.twitter.com/zI5T63aYdU — Opinium (@OpiniumResearch) July 17, 2022 However, Tugendhat was the only one who more people think would make a good prime minister than a bad prime minister. He has a net score of +17 Mordaunt is at -4Sunak is at -5Badenoch is at -17Truss is at -26 pic.twitter.com/K8bGBMphvh — Opinium (@OpiniumResearch) July 17, 2022 We also asked people to choose any of the candidates they think should definitely not be prime minister. 48% said Truss37% said Badenoch31% said Sunak30% said Mordaunt22% said Tugendhat pic.twitter.com/XmtQDxKvTY — Opinium (@OpiniumResearch) July 17, 2022 We also asked about a number of other leadership traits. Sunak was seen as the best to win elections, the best for the economy and to uphold conservative values. Tugendhat was seen as the most likable and trustworthy. Badenoch was seen as the most sympathetic. pic.twitter.com/mi56yg2eoI — Opinium (@OpiniumResearch) July 17, 2022 Finally, we asked those who didn’t vote Tory in 2019 which candidate would make them more likely to consider it in the future. 49% said none of them would make them think about it. 18% said Tugendhat would make them think about it, followed by 8% saying Mordaunt would. pic.twitter.com/d3BZsUwYNz — Opinium (@OpiniumResearch) July 17, 2022 Here is the agenda for the day. 10am: Angela Rayner, the deputy Labor leader, hosts an LBC phone-in. Standing in for James O’Brien, who is on vacation. Other MPs appear later this week. 11.30am: Downing Street briefs lobby. After 3.30pm: Boris Johnson is expected to open a debate on a motion of confidence in the government. 17:00: Voting opens in the third ballot for the Conservative leadership contest. It closes at 19.00 and the result is announced at 20.00. I’m trying to follow the comments below the line (BTL) but it’s impossible to read them all. If you have a direct question, include “Andrew” somewhere and I’m more likely to find it. I try to answer questions and if they’re of general interest I’ll post the question and answer above the line (ATL), though I can’t promise I’ll do it for everyone. If you want to get my attention quickly, it’s probably best to use Twitter. I’m on @AndrewSparrow. Alternatively you can email me at [email protected] Updated at 09.56 BST
