toryleadership

David Cameron's parliamentary support reaches 100

David Cameron how enjoys the public backing of half of the parliamentary party following today's declaration of support from ten more MPs.  The ten are:

1. Peter Bone* (Wellingborough)
2. David Burrowes* (Enfield Southgate)
3. Bill Cash* (Stone)
4. Stephen Crabb* (Preseli Pembrokeshire)
5. Robert Goodwill* (Scarborough and Whitby)
6. Stephen Hammond (Wimbledon)
7. Daniel Kawczynski (Shrewsbury and Atcham)
8. Brooks Newmark (Braintree)
9. Gary Streeter (Devon SW)
10. Desmond Swayne* (New Forest W).

All previously supporters of Liam Fox, six of the ten are Cornerstone Group MPs (marked with an asterisk).  The inclination of Cornerstone MPs towards Mr Cameron was noted yesterday on this blog. 

If the MPs write the sort of letter penned by Robert Key MP to the Salisbury Association they could help to widen Mr Cameron's grassroots lead over Mr Davis.  That lead was confirmed by two weekend polls.

Editor's note: "Reaching the magic level of half of the parliamentary party is significant in one other important respect.  Mr Davis has said that the final round for the leadership election should ideally be an-MPs-only-affair.  He has consistently argued that the next Tory leader should enjoy the support of half of the parliamentary party.  At the time of writing it is Mr Cameron who enjoys that confidence."

To-ing and from-ing

I don't think there's much point running a detailed 'Who's backing whom?' list given the volatility and lie-factors but please use this thread to record news about who going to where, and from where.

Stewart Jackson has defected from David Davis' camp to David Cameron on a day when eleven more MPs have backed David Cameron publicly (so far).  Prominent backers of Liam Fox have gone public - John Redwood, John Whittingdale and Laurence Robertson - but at the time of posting no public defections to Fox.  In addition Nigel Waterson has joined Team Fox from the Clarke list.  The Fox camp appear confident of some gains, however, in their private conversations with me.

I'm told that there will be a big announcement for the 6pm BBC1 News...   

Who's backing who? (rolling update 3)

Sir Malcolm's decision to quit the race reduces the field to four candidates and so I've cleared the clutter from the post when he was still in the race and listed below is a fresh list of public declarations.

This list incorporates today's news that Michael Ancram (a Rifkind backer for all of four days) and Anne Milton have both declared for David Cameron.

PS Don't forget to enter conservativehome's first round prediction competition by clicking here...

David Davis (66)

1. David Amess
2. Richard Bacon
3. John Baron
4. Sir Paul Beresford
5. Graham Brady
6. Julian Brazier
7. James Brokenshire (13/10)
8. Dr Greg Clark
9. Derek Conway
10. David Davies
11. Philip Davies
12. David Davis
13. Nadine Dorries
14. Jonathan Djanogly
15. James Duddridge
16. Nigel Evans
17. David Evenett
18. Michael Fallon
19. Mark Field
20. Eric Forth
21. Roger Gale
22. David Gauke
23. Cheryl Gillan
24. Paul Goodman
25. Damian Green
26. Dominic Grieve
27. Philip Hammond
28. Nick Herbert
29. Mark Hoban
30. Philip Hollobone
31. Adam Holloway
32. Stewart Jackson
33. David Jones
34. Julie Kirkbride
35. Greg Knight
36. Ian Liddell-Grainger
37. David Lidington
38. Tim Loughton
39. Andrew Mackay
40. Anne Main
41. Humphrey Malins
42. John Maples
43. Patrick Mercer
44. Andrew Mitchell
45. Malcolm Moss
46. Andrew Murrison
47. Richard Ottaway
48. James Paice
49. Mike Penning
50. Eric Pickles
51. Mark Pritchard
52. David Ruffley
53. Lee Scott
54. Mark Simmonds
55. Keith Simpson
56. Richard Spring
57. Robert Syms
58. Ian Taylor
59. Shailesh Vara
60. Charles Walker
61. Ben Wallace
62. Bill Wiggin
63. David Willetts
64. David Wilshire
65. Ann Winterton
66. Nicholas Winterton

David Cameron (39)

1. Peter Ainsworth
2. Michael Ancram (joined from Team Rifkind)
3. Tony Baldry
4. Greg Barker
5. Richard Benyon
6. Sir John Butterfill
7. David Cameron
8. Douglas Carswell (12/10)
9. Alan Duncan
10. Philip Dunne (17/10)
11. Tobias Ellwood
12. Nick Gibb MP
13. Michael Gove
14. James Gray
15. Jeremy Hunt
16. Bernard Jenkin (12/10)
17. Boris Johnson
18. Robert Key (13/10)
19. Jacqui Lait (13/10)
20. Mark Lancaster
21. Oliver Letwin
22. Peter Lilley (17/10)
23. Peter Luff
24. Theresa May (12/10)
25. Maria Miller (17/10)
26. Anne Milton
27. David Mundell
28. George Osborne
29. Andrew Robathan
30. Hugh Robertson
31. Grant Shapps
32. Nicholas Soames
33. Graham Stuart (17/10)
34. Hugo Swire
35. Ed Vaizey
36. Peter Viggers
37. Theresa Villiers
38. Robert Wilson (17/10)
39. Jeremy Wright

Kenneth Clarke (26)

1. James Arbuthnot (17/11)
2. John Bercow
3. Alistair Burt
4. James Clappison
5. Kenneth Clarke
6. Sir Patrick Cormack (recent days)
7. David Curry
8. Quentin Davies MP
9. Stephen Dorrell
10. Edward Garnier
11. John Greenway
12. John Gummer
13. Charles Hendry
14. John Horam
15. Andrew Lansley (16/10)
16. Michael Mates
17. Andrew Pelling (17/10)
18. John Penrose (12/10)
19. Sir Malcolm Rifkind
20. Anthony Steen
21. Andrew Tyrie
22. Robert Walter
23. Nigel Waterson
24. Ann Widdecombe
25. Tim Yeo
26. Sir George Young

Liam Fox (23)

1. David Burrowes
2. Geoffrey Cox (17/10)
3. Stephen Crabb
4. Liam Fox
5. Christopher Fraser (16/10)
6. Mark Francois (14/10)
7. Robert Goodwill (14/10)
8. Chris Grayling
9. Justine Greening
10. Greg Hands
11. Stephen Hammond
12. Mark Harper
13. John Hayes (11/10)
14. Oliver Heald
15. Gerald Howarth (16/10)
16. Eleanor Laing
17. Daniel Kawczynski
18. Brooks Newmark
19. Stephen O’Brien
20. Owen Paterson (14/10)
21. Gary Streeter
22. Desmond Swayne
23. Angela Watkinson (14/10)

Who's backing who? (rolling update 2)

It's now official - David Willetts is endorsing David Davis.  David Willetts is the first leadership contender, with parliamentary backing, to quit the race.  There are now five contenders (with parliamentary backers) still in the race: David Davis, David Cameron, Ken Clarke, Liam Fox and Sir Malcolm Rifkind.  It is not clear who David Willetts' four backers will support.  This rolling update will identify them if and when they - and others - declare.

David Davis (65)

1. David Amess (2/10)
2. Richard Bacon
3. John Baron (2/10)
4. Sir Paul Beresford (2/10)
5. Graham Brady
6. Julian Brazier
7. Dr Greg Clark (24/9)
8. Derek Conway
9. David Davies
10. Philip Davies
11. David Davis
12. Nadine Dorries
13. Jonathan Djanogly
14. James Duddridge
15. Nigel Evans
16. David Evenett
17. Michael Fallon
18. Mark Field (25/9)
19. Eric Forth
20. Roger Gale
21. David Gauke (2/10)
22. Cheryl Gillan (22/9)
23. Paul Goodman
24. Damian Green
25. Dominic Grieve (22/9)
26. Philip Hammond
27. Nick Herbert
28. Mark Hoban (25/9) - former DW supporter
29. Philip Hollobone
30. Adam Holloway (6/10)
31. Stewart Jackson (24/9 in Peterborough Evening News)
32. David Jones
33. Julie Kirkbride
34. Greg Knight
35. Ian Liddell-Grainger (19/9)
36. David Lidington (25/9) - former DW supporter
37. Tim Loughton (19/9)
38. Andrew Mackay (20/9)
39. Anne Main
40. Humphrey Malins (22/9)
41. John Maples
42. Patrick Mercer
43. Andrew Mitchell
44. Malcolm Moss (2/10)
45. Andrew Murrison (30/9)
46. Richard Ottaway (21/9)
47. James Paice (2/10)
48. Mike Penning (2/10)
49. Eric Pickles
50. Mark Pritchard
51. David Ruffley
52. Lee Scott
53. Mark Simmonds (19/9)
54. Keith Simpson (23/9)
55. Richard Spring
56. Robert Syms (19/9)
57. Ian Taylor
58. Shailesh Vara
59. Charles Walker
60. Ben Wallace (2/10)
61. Bill Wiggin
62. David Willetts
63. David Wilshire
64. Ann Winterton (2/10)
65. Nicholas Winterton (21/9)

David Cameron (27)

1. Peter Ainsworth (10/10)
2. Tony Baldry
3. Greg Barker
4. Richard Benyon
5. Sir John Butterfill (29/9)
6. David Cameron
7. Alan Duncan (6/10)
8. Tobias Ellwood
9. Nick Gibb MP (7/10)
10. Michael Gove
11. James Gray (6/10)
12. Jeremy Hunt (6/10)
13. Boris Johnson
14. Mark Lancaster (6/10)
15. Oliver Letwin
16. Peter Luff
17. David Mundell (5/10)
18. George Osborne
19. Andrew Robathan
20. Hugh Robertson (29/9)
21. Grant Shapps (6/10)
22. Nicholas Soames (29/9)   
23. Hugo Swire
24. Ed Vaizey
25. Peter Viggers (8/10)
26. Theresa Villiers (5/10)
27. Jeremy Wright (7/10)

Kenneth Clarke (20)

1. John Bercow
2. Alistair Burt
3. James Clappison (1/10)
4. Kenneth Clarke
5. David Curry
6. Quentin Davies MP (28/9)
7. Stephen Dorrell
8. Edward Garnier (10/10)
9. John Greenway (7/10)
10. John Gummer
11. Charles Hendry (16/9 - was backing David Willetts)
12. John Horam (28/9)
13. Michael Mates (28/9)
14. Anthony Steen
15. Andrew Tyrie
16. Robert Walter
17. Nigel Waterson (30/9)
18. Ann Widdecombe
19. Tim Yeo
20. Sir George Young (28/9)

Liam Fox (15)

1. David Burrowes (10/10)
2. Stephen Crabb (6/10)
3. Liam Fox
4. Chris Grayling
5. Justine Greening
6. Greg Hands
7. Stephen Hammond (6/10)
8. Mark Harper (6/10)
9. Oliver Heald
10. Eleanor Laing
11. Daniel Kawczynski
12. Brooks Newmark (6/10)
13. Stephen O’Brien
14. Gary Streeter
15. Desmond Swayne

Sir Malcolm Rifkind (7)

1. Michael Ancram (7/10)
2. Crispin Blunt
3. Peter Bottomley
4. Sir Patrick Cormack (7/10)
5. Jacqui Lait
6. Andrew Pelling
7. Sir Malcolm Rifkind.

The rolling update for when David Willetts was still in the race can be accessed here.

Who's backing who? (rolling update)

(5/9: I've decided to make this a rolling update in order to avoid gumming up the whole blog with long new posts every time a single parliamentary endorsement is announced.  New endorsements will be listed in bold type with the date of their endorsement in brackets after their name).

David Davis (39)

1. Richard Bacon
2. Graham Brady
3. Julian Brazier
4. Derek Conway
5. David Davies
6. Philip Davies
7. David Davis
8. Nadine Dorries
9. Jonathan Djanogly
10. James Duddridge (4/9)
11. Nigel Evans
12. David Evenett (4/9)
13. Michael Fabricant (2/9)
14. Michael Fallon (7/9 - from this story)
15. Eric Forth
16. Roger Gale
17. Paul Goodman
18. Damian Green
19. Philip Hammond
20. Nick Herbert
21. Philip Hollobone (4/9)
22. David Jones
23. Julie Kirkbride
24. Greg Knight
25. Anne Main (4/9)
26. John Maples
27. Patrick Mercer
28. Andrew Mitchell
29. Eric Pickles
30. Mark Pritchard (4/9) (added to list after comment below from 'Coffee Monster')
31. David Ruffley
32. Lee Scott
33. Richard Spring
34. Ian Taylor
35. Shailesh Vara
36. Peter Viggers
37. Charles Walker (4/9)
38. Bill Wiggin
39. David Wilshire

David Cameron (13)

1. Tony Baldry
2. Greg Barker
3. Richard Benyon
4. David Cameron
5. Tobias Ellwood (13/9)
6. Michael Gove
7. Boris Johnson
8. Oliver Letwin
9. Peter Luff
10. George Osborne
11. Andrew Robathan
12. Hugo Swire
13. Ed Vaizey

Kenneth Clarke (11)

1. John Bercow
2. Alistair Burt
3. Kenneth Clarke
4. David Curry
5. Stephen Dorrell (5/9)
6. John Gummer
7. Anthony Steen
8. Andrew Tyrie
9. Robert Walter
10. Ann Widdecombe
11. Tim Yeo

Liam Fox (10)

1. Liam Fox
2. Chris Grayling
3. Justine Greening
4. Greg Hands
5. Oliver Heald
6. Eleanor Laing
7. Daniel Kawczynski
8. Stephen O’Brien
9. Gary Streeter (8/9)
10. Desmond Swayne (8/9)

Sir Malcolm Rifkind (5)

1. Crispin Blunt
2. Peter Bottomley
3. Jacqui Lait
4. Andrew Pelling
5. Sir Malcolm Rifkind

David Willetts (5)

1. Nick Gibb (11/9 - declared at Conservative Future training event)
2. Charles Hendry
3. Mark Hoban
4. David Lidington
5. David Willetts

Who is backing who? (4)

It is increasingly unclear if the next Tory leader will be chosen by MPs only.  Today's Telegraph reports Francis Maude warning of disaster if one-third of constitutional convention members decide to reject Michael Howard's disenfranchisement proposals (as most think they might).

But the votes of MPs will still matter even if we keep the one-member-one-vote system.   MPs will have to thin the field of candidates to two - as they did last time with their IDS and Ken Clarke choice.

It's been a long time since I produced a 'Who's backing who?' list and I've been told that it should be 'Who's backing whom?'.  Apologies to all!

I now intend to update this page on a rolling basis (and have added an easy-to-see link in the right-hand margin to always show the latest tally).  Today's list (of firm backers) is very similar to yesterday's Times list but I have additionally got Philip Davies in DD's column and Julian Brazier declared for the Shadow Home Secretary yesterday.  David Davis' rolling thunder process of endorsements is clearly underway.

More speculatively I would expect Henry Bellingham and James Paice to be additional Rifkind backers.  Stephen Dorrell, John Greenway, Michael Jack, Andrew Lansley, Michael Mates and Sir George Young are all likely to back Ken Clarke.  Nicholas Soames and Peter Viggers may both endorse David Cameron (mistake corrected after visitor 'Selsdon Man' spotted inconsistency).  There is certainly a real danger for DC that Clarke could move into second place in the next couple of weeks and he will do that with people who supported him in '01.    

David Davis (31)

1. Richard Bacon
2. Graham Brady
3. Julian Brazier
4. Derek Conway
5. David Davies
6. Philip Davies
7. David Davis
8. Nadine Dorries
9. Jonathan Djanogly
10. Nigel Evans
11. Eric Forth
12. Roger Gale
13. Paul Goodman
14. Damian Green
15. Philip Hammond
16. Nick Herbert
17. David Jones
18. Julie Kirkbride
19. Greg Knight
20. John Maples
21. Patrick Mercer
22. Andrew Mitchell
23. Eric Pickles
24. David Ruffley
25. Lee Scott
26. Richard Spring
27. Ian Taylor
28. Shailesh Vara
29. Peter Viggers
30. Bill Wiggin
31. David Wilshire

David Cameron (12)

1. Tony Baldry
2. Greg Barker
3. Richard Benyon
4. David Cameron
5. Michael Gove
6. Boris Johnson
7. Oliver Letwin
8. Peter Luff
9. George Osborne
10. Andrew Robathan
11. Hugo Swire
12. Ed Vaizey

Kenneth Clarke (10)

1. John Bercow
2. Alistair Burt
3. Kenneth Clarke
4. David Curry
5. John Gummer
6. Anthony Steen
7. Andrew Tyrie
8. Robert Walter
9. Ann Widdecombe
10. Tim Yeo

Liam Fox (8)

1. Liam Fox
2. Chris Grayling
3. Justine Greening
4. Greg Hands
5. Oliver Heald
6. Eleanor Laing
7. Daniel Kawczynski
8. Stephen O’Brien

Sir Malcolm Rifkind (5)

1. Crispin Blunt
2. Peter Bottomley
3. Jacqui Lait
4. Andrew Pelling
5. Sir Malcolm Rifkind

David Willetts (4)

1. Charles Hendry
2. Mark Hoban
3. David Lidington
4. David Willetts

Which pundits are backing which candidates?

Yesterday’s Guardian story confirming Ken Clarke’s leadership ambitions was genuinely newsworthy but August hasn’t produced much else of real significance. Regular readers will know that Friday is usually ‘Good week, bad week’ time on this blog. At the end of the month I’ll produce a ‘Good August, bad August’ review but there hasn’t been enough to justify a weekly grading.

One of the advantages that a blogger enjoys over a conventional journalist is that we’re not required to find content for the same-sized newspaper or news bulletin everyday. When there’s a lot to say we have the room to say it. When we don’t it’s best to shut up. I’ll resume the ‘full service’ in September. In the meantime I hope you’ll forgive the reduced number of posts whilst I sit in the garden enjoying the sun and ploughing through Antony Beevor’s Berlin.

Another casualty of the leadership candidates and MPs decamping to their summer holidays has been the ‘Who’s backing who?’ feature. Since my last post of 21 July I’m only aware of one extra parliamentary endorsement and that was David Davies, the excellent new MP for Monmouth, declaring for his near-namesake. Reading today’s Spectator and Frank Johnson’s convoluted endorsement of David Davis I did think a review of which candidates had the backing of most pundits might be of interest.

It’s probably an unforgivable sleight to Wat Tyler and the other ‘pyjama bloggers for Davis’ but for the purposes of this post I’m going to define ‘pundit’ as a conventional newspaper/ TV commentator. [I still love you, Wat!]

In these terms David Davis has at least three declared supporters. [I emphasise ‘at least’ because I’m well aware that I’ve probably missed lots of names and I hope that readers will fill the gaps in my knowledge with their own posts]. Frank Johnson (The Spectator) has declared for him (as just mentioned) and former Tory MP Michael Brown has effectively backed his long-term friend from his Independent perch. Mr Davis’ most notable (and surprising) endorsement came from Tim Hames in The Times. DD has also attracted some negative attention… from Bruce Anderson and Peter Oborne. Criticism is, perhaps, almost inevitable if you’re the frontrunner but it’s certainly been strong.

David Cameron is doing very slightly better. Matthew Parris (The Times), Suzanne Moore (The Mail on Sunday) and India Knight (The Sunday Times) have all blessed Mr Cameron with their journalistic ink. DC also has the imprimatur of Boris Johnson who, as a pundit and parliamentarian, squeezes on to both of my ‘Who’s backing who?’ lists. Mr Cameron has also attracted negative attention. Within The birth of Blameron Nick Cohen wrote this:

"You leave Cameron's speeches without the faintest idea of how he would tackle Islamism or protect his country. Should Britain stick with the United States or move closer to France and Germany? What's gone wrong with multi-culturalism? Should democracy be encouraged in the Middle East, and if so how? Answer comes there none."

The contest’s third David – Willetts – does much better amongst columnists than colleagues. They all fall slightly short of endorsements but ‘Two Brains’ has received very positive coverage from Mary Ann Sieghart (Times), Peter Riddell (Times), Peter Oborne (Spectator/ London Evening Standard) and Philip Stephens (FT).

I can’t find any takers for Fox, Clarke, Rifkind, Lansley, May etc but, to repeat myself, I’m very conscious of my partial knowledge. I have two questions for readers:

(1) ‘Which endorsements have I missed?’ and
(2) ‘Do the endorsements of pundits matter?’

Who's backing who? (3)

”He is able, articulate and intelligent. He has clear beliefs and a clear programme; he also listens. He has shown great ability in attracting the attention of people who believe in conservative values but have given up voting for the Conservative Party.”

Those words conclude a letter to this morning's Telegraph endorsing Shadow Education Secretary David Cameron. The letter’s signatories include two previously unknown Cameron supporters - Andrew Robathan MP and Newbury’s new MP, Richard Benyon.

Last night’s centralising vote by MPs to scrap one-member-one-vote means that endorsements from MPs will become critically important again. David Davis continues to lead the endorsements field and yesterday this blog identified Patrick Mercer as a new supporter.

David Davis (28)

Richard Bacon, Henry Bellingham, Graham Brady, Derek Conway, Philip Davies, David Davis, Nadine Dorries, Jonathan Djanogly, Nigel Evans, Eric Forth, Roger Gale, Paul Goodman, Damian Green, John Greenway, Philip Hammond, Nick Herbert, Julie Kirkbride, Greg Knight, John Maples, Patrick Mercer, Andrew Mitchell, Andrew Murrison, Richard Spring, Ian Taylor, Shailesh Vara, Peter Viggers, Bill Wiggin, David Wilshire.

David Cameron (12)

Greg Barker, Richard Benyon, David Cameron, Michael Gove, Michael Howard, Boris Johnson, Oliver Letwin, Peter Luff, George Osborne, Andrew Robathan, Hugo Swire, Ed Vaizey.

Liam Fox (8)

Liam Fox, Chris Grayling, Justine Greening, Greg Hands, Oliver Heald, Eleanor Laing, Daniel Kawczynski, Stephen O’Brien

David Willetts (4)

Charles Hendry, Mark Hoban, David Lidington, David Willetts.

Clarke-Lansley-Rifkind (30)

Peter Ainsworth, James Arbuthnot, Tony Baldry, Richard Benyon, Crispin Blunt, Alistair Burt, Kenneth Clarke, David Curry, Quentin Davies, John Gummer, John Horam, Nick Hurd, Michael Jack, Robert Key, Jacqui Lait, Andrew Lansley, Anne McIntosh, Anne Milton, Malcolm Moss, Richard Ottaway, James Paice, Sir Malcolm Rifkind, Keith Simpson, Nicholas Soames, Anthony Steen, Andrew Tyrie, Robert Walter, Ann Widdecombe, Tim Yeo, Sir George Young.

For the basis for this list please read edition one and its explanatory notes.

Who's backing who? (2)

This morning's Telegraph says that David Davis' camp puts his support at 'north of 50' MPs with David Cameron and Ken Clarke each enjoying the support of about 25 MPs.

Listed below - in bold - are six extra MPs who have gone public with their choice for the next Tory leader. David Davis and David Cameron both get two more backers - Liam Fox has one more supporter. Quentin Davies has also been added - to the Clarke-Lansley-Rifkind block. For background on this list please read last week's entry and its explanatory notes.

David Davis (27)

Richard Bacon, Henry Bellingham, Graham Brady, Derek Conway, Philip Davies, David Davis, Nadine Dorries, Jonathan Djanogly, Nigel Evans, Eric Forth, Roger Gale, Paul Goodman, Damian Green, John Greenway, Philip Hammond, Nick Herbert, Julie Kirkbride, Greg Knight, John Maples, Andrew Mitchell, Andrew Murrison, Richard Spring, Ian Taylor, Shailesh Vara, Peter Viggers, Bill Wiggin, David Wilshire.

David Cameron (9)

Greg Barker, David Cameron, Michael Gove, Michael Howard, Boris Johnson, Oliver Letwin, George Osborne, Hugo Swire, Ed Vaizey.

Liam Fox (8)

Liam Fox, Chris Grayling, Justine Greening, Greg Hands, Oliver Heald, Eleanor Laing, Daniel Kawczynski, Stephen O’Brien

David Willetts (4)

Charles Hendry, Mark Hoban, David Lidington, David Willetts.

Clarke-Lansley-Rifkind (30)

Peter Ainsworth, James Arbuthnot, Tony Baldry, Richard Benyon, Crispin Blunt, Alistair Burt, Kenneth Clarke, David Curry, Quentin Davies, John Gummer, John Horam, Nick Hurd, Michael Jack, Robert Key, Jacqui Lait, Andrew Lansley, Anne McIntosh, Anne Milton, Malcolm Moss, Richard Ottaway, James Paice, Sir Malcolm Rifkind, Keith Simpson, Nicholas Soames, Anthony Steen, Andrew Tyrie, Robert Walter, Ann Widdecombe, Tim Yeo, Sir George Young.

Socially conservative group of MPs to quiz candidates

A group of about twenty socially conservative Tory MPs has united to invite the principal leadership contenders to be interviewed by them – one-by-one.

The group, which is coordinated by John Hayes and Edward Leigh, is likely to quiz the candidates about their views on family values, abortion, euthanasia, harm reduction approaches to drug-use and faith-based welfare.

In order to maximize their leverage on the race there is even talk of the group deciding to vote for the ‘best’ candidate en masse. If, however, none of the existing contenders for the Tory crown prove satisfactory the group may even run a candidate of its own.

The group is expected to lean towards David Davis or the pro-life Liam Fox but David Cameron’s pro-marriage intervention earlier in the week will have muddied the waters. The Hayes-Leigh group believes that the rebuilding of the family is essential to child welfare and poverty-reduction.

The in-your-face tactics of this group might encourage others to do something similar. The party’s Euro-sceptics are in a particularly strong position to flex their muscles. Many were unhappy at the way that Michael Howard continued the Conservative Party’s relationship with the federalist European Peoples’ Party, within the European Parliament. They might seek explicit commitments from would-be leaders for a divorce from the EPP.