Former Home Secretary James Cleverly announces Tory leadership bid
23 July 2024, 20:24 | Updated: 23 July 2024, 21:42
Former Home Secretary James Cleverly has announced he will stand in the Conservative Party leadership contest.
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Announcing his bid on X, formerly Twitter, Mr Cleverly said the party needs to focus on "the needs of the British people" and "relentlessly work to make their lives better."
He called for unity and for the Tories to "once again restore the confidence of the British people of us as a party."
"We need to re-establish our reputation as the party who in government helps grow the economy, helps people achieve their goals, their dreams, and their aspirations."
I’m running to be Conservative Party Leader. Here’s why 👇 pic.twitter.com/6eFPMocIyc
— James Cleverly🇬🇧 (@JamesCleverly) July 23, 2024
Former leader Rishi Sunak announced he would step down after his party lost the election in a landslide that swept Sir Keir Starmer to Number 10 Downing Street on July 5.
Mr Cleverly is the first Tory party member to officially announce he is standing in the leadership contest ahead of nominations opening tomorrow.
Kemi Badenoch, Tom Tugendhat, Priti Patel and Suella Braverman are expected to also launch leadership bids in the coming days, although none have confirmed they will stand in the contest.
Read More: Sunak to stay in post until November as Tories choose to go long on Conservative leadership race
Mr Cleverly, who also served as foreign secretary, said in the video that when he held the role he "stood up to our enemies around the world and I helped defend our friends."
He added: "When I was home secretary, I recognised how important it was to get net migration under control and I took action which has seen those net migration figures come down.
"When I was party chairman I campaigned right across the UK supporting fantastic Conservative candidates and helping them become MPs, often in parts of the country that had never had a Conservative MP before.
"I want to make sure that those parts of the country have a Conservative MP once again."
