Rishi Sunak’s bid to be the next leader of the Conservative Party received a significant new boost after Steve Barclay, the health secretary, announced his support for the former chancellor.
Mr Barclay said in a statement that he had “worked closely with him when I was chief secretary to the Treasury and I am confident that he has all the necessary qualities to take our country forward”.
Mr Barkley, Boris Johnson’s former No 10 chief of staff, is the third senior minister to back Mr Sunak in the past 24 hours, after Grant Shapps, the transport secretary, and Dominic Raab, the deputy prime minister, announced their support .
Eight candidates are still in the running to replace Mr Johnson after nominations closed last night: Mr Sunak, Liz Truss, Tom Tugendhat, Kemi Badenoch, Penny Mordaunt, Jeremy Hunt, Nadhim Zahawi and Suella Braverman.
The first round of voting will take place this afternoon from 13.30 to 15.30 and the result will be announced at 17.00. Any candidate who fails to secure the votes of 30 Tory MPs will be knocked out, with the next round taking place tomorrow.
Follow the latest updates below.
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