Grant Shapps unveils candidacy to become Tory leader as he takes on 'conspiring' rivals

Transport Secretary Grant Shapps has launched his bid for the leadership of the Conservative Party by attacking his political rivals for their disloyalty to Boris Johnson.
Mr. Shapps said his main aim was to rebuild the economy to be Europe's biggest by 2050 and to tackle the country's cost of living crisis.
He ruled out a general election and said he would produce an emergency budget, ordering his chancellor to cut taxes on the most vulnerable and giving state support to energy-intensive businesses, as reported by .
The 53-year-old, who is the MP for Welwyn Hatfield, also fired a broadside at his leadership rivals and suggested he had always been loyal to Boris Johnson.
He said: “I haven't spent the last turbulent years plotting or briefing the prime minister. I didn't run a leadership campaign behind his back. I tell you this: for all his faults – and who has no faults? - I like Boris Johnson. I never for a moment doubted his love for this country."
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Mr Shapps was a strong supporter of the Prime Minister and helped him win the leadership race in 2019, as well as supporting him publicly on several occasions.
< p>He added: "It's easy to criticize Boris after years of keeping his head down while enjoying his patronage. I'm glad I didn't.
"Even when the skies darkened over his premiership, often because of mistakes made by him, I hoped that he could withdraw it. Because if we lost him, we would lose a man who makes a unique connection with people."
Despite his support for Mr Johnson, the Transport Secretary signaled that if he won the race to direction, it would be a return to more traditional conservative values around lower taxation and a smaller state.
He said: "I think we've lost sight of what we should be as a Conservative government. We should trust people and allow them to spend their money as they see fit.
"We need to chart a clear path to cutting taxes, not just expressing good intentions. Covid has witnessed a necessary and extraordinary expansion of government spending and a level of "unprecedented state interference in people's privacy. As conservatives, we should tolerate the needless pursuit of one or the other."
His statement comes after Secretary Defense Ben Wallace has ruled himself out of the Conservative Party leadership race despite his status as a frontrunner among the Conservative base.Brexiteer Steve Baker has also said he will not run.
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In addition to Mr. Shapps, Rishi Sunak and Suella Braverman, ex-Minister Kemi Badenoch and Tom Tugendhat have launched their own offers.
Foreign Secretary Liz Truss, Minister of Commerce Penny Mordaunt, Chancellor Nadhim Zahawi and former Health Secretaries Sajid Javid and Jeremy Hunt are expected to also launch their own offers shortly.

Politics Jul 10, 2022 0 105 Add to Reading List

Grant Shapps unveils candidacy to become Tory leader as he takes on 'conspiring' rivals

Transport Secretary Grant Shapps has launched his bid for the leadership of the Conservative Party by attacking his political rivals for their disloyalty to Boris Johnson.

Mr. Shapps said his main aim was to rebuild the economy to be Europe's biggest by 2050 and to tackle the country's cost of living crisis.

He ruled out a general election and said he would produce an emergency budget, ordering his chancellor to cut taxes on the most vulnerable and giving state support to energy-intensive businesses, as reported by .

The 53-year-old, who is the MP for Welwyn Hatfield, also fired a broadside at his leadership rivals and suggested he had always been loyal to Boris Johnson.

He said: “I haven't spent the last turbulent years plotting or briefing the prime minister. I didn't run a leadership campaign behind his back. I tell you this: for all his faults – and who has no faults? - I like Boris Johnson. I never for a moment doubted his love for this country."

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Johnson commits to spending 2.5% of GDP on defense - follow live

Mr Shapps was a strong supporter of the Prime Minister and helped him win the leadership race in 2019, as well as supporting him publicly on several occasions.

< p>He added: "It's easy to criticize Boris after years of keeping his head down while enjoying his patronage. I'm glad I didn't.

"Even when the skies darkened over his premiership, often because of mistakes made by him, I hoped that he could withdraw it. Because if we lost him, we would lose a man who makes a unique connection with people."

Despite his support for Mr Johnson, the Transport Secretary signaled that if he won the race to direction, it would be a return to more traditional conservative values around lower taxation and a smaller state.

He said: "I think we've lost sight of what we should be as a Conservative government. We should trust people and allow them to spend their money as they see fit.

"We need to chart a clear path to cutting taxes, not just expressing good intentions. Covid has witnessed a necessary and extraordinary expansion of government spending and a level of "unprecedented state interference in people's privacy. As conservatives, we should tolerate the needless pursuit of one or the other."

His statement comes after Secretary Defense Ben Wallace has ruled himself out of the Conservative Party leadership race despite his status as a frontrunner among the Conservative base.Brexiteer Steve Baker has also said he will not run.

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In addition to Mr. Shapps, Rishi Sunak and Suella Braverman, ex-Minister Kemi Badenoch and Tom Tugendhat have launched their own offers.

Foreign Secretary Liz Truss, Minister of Commerce Penny Mordaunt, Chancellor Nadhim Zahawi and former Health Secretaries Sajid Javid and Jeremy Hunt are expected to also launch their own offers shortly.