Rishi Sunak enters Tory leadership race vowing to 'rebuild trust' after Boris Johnson

Rishi Sunak entered the Tory leadership race promising to 'restore confidence' after multiple Boris Johnson scandals, but with a warning that the country cannot afford early tax cuts.

The former Chancellor - the favorite with the public - also hinted that he would end the "culture wars" the current Prime Minister has loved fighting, promising: "We've had enough of the division.

Stealing a march on his rivals, with Liz Truss, Jeremy Hunt and Ben Wallace set to kick off their campaigns this weekend, Mr Sunak has cast himself as the fiscally responsible candidate, resistant to the demand for tax cuts.

Mr. Sunak also launched a website, ready4rishi.com, which - as The Independent exclusively revealed in January - placed the Hares at No. 10 when it first appeared in September 2020. At the time, sources close to Mr Sunak described the claims, as well as those relating to the Chancellor having prepared a leadership campaign, as "completely untrue".

"Is it Is this a moment we face with honesty, seriousness and determination, or do we tell each other comforting fairy tales that might make us feel better now but will make our children worse off tomorrow?" asked one clever video that was tweeted just after 4pm on Friday.

Recommended .JPG?quality=75&width=230&auto=webp" alt="Johnson pledges to spend 2.5% of GDP on defense - follow live " height="56" width="82" layout="responsive" class="i-amphtml-layout-responsive i-amphtml-layout-size-defined" i-amphtml-layout="r esponsive"/>Johnson pledges to spend 2.5% of GDP on defense - follow live

And he suggested that the culture wars Mr Johnson has waged on refugees, trans rights, statues and kneeling would be reduced if he became Prime Minister.

“We are tired of division. Politics at its best is a unifying business, and I've spent my career bringing people together. Because it's the only way to succeed,” the video reads.

The launch made Mr Sunak the third declared candidate, alongside Tom Tugendhat, the inexperienced Chairman of the Business Committee of the House of Commons, and Brexiteer Attorney General Suella. Braverman.

Former Equalities Minister Kemi Badenoch became the fourth to launch a Tory leadership bid on Friday.

Ms Badenoch, who quit her post Wednesday, wrote in The Times that she would cut taxes alongside “tight spending” and that she wanted to lead a “limited government focused on the essentials.”

The Independent understands that Mr Hunt, who lost to Mr Johnson in 2019, will launch his campaign on Sunday, when Foreign Secretary Liz Truss is also expected to enter the race.

Mr. Wallace is still considering an offer in talks with friends and family, but is expected to make his speech and is believed to have had the backing of around 30 Mr Johnson supporters for the past three years there is.

The party's 1922 committee will decide on Monday the timing of the first stage of the election, which will see Tory MPs narrow the candidates down to a shortlist of just two.

< p>The vote could take place almost every Commons sitting day to complete the process by the time MPs leave for their summer recess on July 21.

Tory members will then make the final choice , after jostling across the country, with the aim of declaring the winner at the end of August - although there is pressure to move f...