London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Sep 04, 2025

Tory leadership: Rivals get personal in latest TV debate

Tory leadership: Rivals get personal in latest TV debate

Tory leadership rivals stepped up their attacks on each other's records and policies in their latest TV debate.

Foreign Secretary Liz Truss told ex-chancellor Rishi Sunak tax rises he introduced would "choke off" growth.

Mr Sunak accused Ms Truss of peddling "something-for-nothing economics". Other flashpoints were trans rights, Brexit and trust in politics.

All five ruled out an early general election if they became prime minister in seven weeks' time.

At one point, the candidates were asked to raise their hands if they would give departing Prime Minister Boris Johnson a job in their cabinet. None of them did.

MPs will vote for a third time on Monday as they whittle down the field eventually to two, who will then face postal ballot of Tory members to decide who will be the next prime minister.

In the hour-long ITV debate, some of the fiercest clashes were between Mr Sunak and Ms Truss, whose divisions over how to bring rising living costs under control while growing the economy were laid bare.

The record of Mr Sunak - who won the first two rounds of MPs' voting - as chancellor has come under sustained attack during the leadership campaign.

Mr Sunak has been forced to defend tax rises introduced during his time as chancellor, including April's hike in National Insurance to pay for social care and the NHS.

In the debate, Ms Truss said Mr Sunak had "raised taxes to the highest level in 70 years", arguing that this was "not going to drive economic growth".

"The fact is that raising taxes at this moment will choke off economic growth, it will prevent us getting the revenue we need to pay off the debt," Ms Truss.

Mr Sunak responded that the pandemic damaged the economy and the money has to be paid back.

"There's a cost to these things and the cost of higher inflation, higher mortgage rates, eroded savings," Mr Sunak said. "And you know what? This something-for-nothing economics isn't Conservative. It's socialism."

Mr Sunak and Ms Truss had some testy exchanges over tax policy and Brexit


Trade minister Penny Mordaunt - the bookmakers' favourite to win the race - said the limited tax cuts she advocated were not inflationary and people need help now with the cost of living.

"I don't understand why Rishi doesn't understand that," she said.

But Mr Sunak hit back, accusing Ms Mordaunt of a "dangerous" plan to scrap his economic rule of only borrowing to invest.

The former chancellor said even Jeremy Corbyn - the left-wing former Labour leader - did not advocate such a loosening of the public finances.

There were also sharp exchanges between Ms Mordaunt and former equalities minister Kemi Badenoch over a row about the self-identification for transgender people.

Ahead of the debate, Ms Mordaunt told the BBC there were a "number of smears going on in the papers" and dismissed claims she had backed gender self-identification when she was an equalities minister in 2019.

"I think this whole thing is unedifying," Ms Mordaunt said. "I know why this is being done. What I would say to you is, all attempts to paint me as an out of touch individual will fail."

Ms Badenoch said she was the candidate for the future whose honesty could "change things for the better".

Other key moments in the debate included:


*  Mr Sunak defended his wife Akshata's previous non-domiciled tax status and her family's wealth, arguing theirs was "an incredibly Conservative story"

*  Pointing out Ms Truss had been a Liberal Democrat and a Remain supporter in the past, Mr Sunak asked her which one she regretted most. Ms Truss said she had "been on a political journey"

*  Ms Badenoch accused Mr Sunak of not taking her seriously when she raised concerns about Covid loan fraud, which he denied

*  When asked if they would sit next to Russia President Vladimir Putin at a G20 summit, all but Ms Truss said they would not. Ms Truss said she would "call Putin out"

*  All candidates said they would back the UK's commitment to curb carbon emissions to net zero by 2050

Colleagues turn to battle

You had to keep reminding yourself these were five people who are actually in the same party.

And the two of them taking the greatest lumps out of each other sat around the same cabinet table a fortnight ago.

Changing leaders between elections can offer a party a chance to renew in office.

It also offers plentiful opportunity for it to rip itself to shreds in public.

Tom Tugendhat - chairman of the foreign affairs select committee - said those who had been ministers under Mr Johnson "lent credibility to the chaos" of his government.

Grilling Ms Mordaunt, Mr Tugendhat challenged the trade minister to give the "details of the plans you are laying out".

In reply Ms Mordaunt said: "I think there's a couple of things we need in order to win the next general election: one of them is me as the prime minister because the polling shows that I'm the only one that can beat Keir Starmer and take the fight to Labour."

The five remaining candidates are vying to succeed Mr Johnson as Tory leader and prime minister after a cabinet mutiny forced him to resign.

In a sign of how close the race has become, a survey of party members for the Conservative Home website on Saturday suggested Ms Badenoch was leading the pack, with Truss in second and Mordaunt - currently the bookmakers' favourite - dropping to third.

But Mr Sunak is still in pole position after coming top in the first two rounds of voting among Tory MPs.

Labour shadow minister Conor McGinn said the debate showed how "out of touch" the Tories were, accusing them of squabbling over "fantasy economic plans" while households struggle with living costs.

Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey said none of the Tory candidates have "a plan to get our country out of the crisis that they have caused" and urged the party's new leader to call a general election as soon as they are in post.

SNP Deputy Westminster Leader Kirsten Oswald MP said Scotland was "lucky to get a cursory mention in a debate where the candidates failed to escape the Westminster bubble for the public at home" while people were hit by the cost of living crisis.


Watch: Tory leadership rivals step up their attacks in second debate with host Julie Etchingham (centre)


Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Putin Celebrates ‘Unprecedentedly High’ Ties with China as Gazprom Seals Power of Siberia-2 Deal
China Unveils New Weapons in Grand Military Parade as Xi Hosts Putin and Kim
Queen Camilla’s Teenage Courage: Fended Off Attempted Assault on London Train, New Biography Reveals
Scottish Brothers Set Record in Historic Pacific Row
Rapper Cardi B Cleared of Liability in Los Angeles Civil Assault Trial
Google Avoids Break-Up in U.S. Antitrust Case as Stocks Rise
Couple celebrates 80th wedding anniversary at assisted living facility in Lancaster
Information Warfare in the Age of AI: How Language Models Become Targets and Tools
The White House on LinkedIn Has Changed Their Profile Picture to Donald Trump
"Insulted the Prophet Muhammad": Woman Burned Alive by Angry Mob in Niger State, Nigeria
Trump Responds to Death Rumors – Announces 'Missile City'
Court of Appeal Allows Asylum Seekers to Remain at Essex Hotel Amid Local Tax Boycott Threats
Germany in Turmoil: Ukrainian Teenage Girl Pushed to Death by Illegal Iraqi Migrant
United Krack down on human rights: Graham Linehan Arrested at Heathrow Over Three X Posts, Hospitalised, Released on Bail with Posting Ban
Asian and Middle Eastern Investors Avoid US Markets
Ray Dalio Warns of US Shift to Autocracy
Eurozone Inflation Rises to 2.1% in August
Russia and China Sign New Gas Pipeline Deal
China's Robotics Industry Fuels Export Surge
Suntory Chairman Resigns After Police Probe
Gold Price Hits New All-Time Record
Von der Leyen's Plane Hit by Suspected Russian GPS Interference in an Incident Believed to Be Caused by Russia or by Pro-Peace or by Anti-Corruption European Activists
UK Fintechs Explore Buying US Banks
Greece Suspends 5% of Schools as Birth Rate Drops
Apollo to Launch $5 Billion Sports Investment Vehicle
Bolsonaro Trial Nears Close Amid US-Brazil Tension
European Banks Push for Lower Cross-Border Barriers
Poland's Offshore Wind Sector Attracts Investors
Nvidia Reveals: Two Mystery Customers Account for About 40% of Revenue
Woody Allen: "I Would Be Happy to Direct Trump Again in a Film"
Pickles are the latest craze among Generation Z in the United States.
Deadline Day Delivers Record £125m Isak Move and Donnarumma to City
Nestlé Removes CEO Laurent Freixe Following Undisclosed Relationship with Subordinate
Giuliani Seriously Injured in Accident – Trump to Award Him the Presidential Medal of Freedom
EU is getting aggressive: Four AfD Candidates Die Unexpectedly Ahead of North Rhine-Westphalia Local Elections
Lula and Putin Hold Strategic BRICS Discussions Ahead of Trump–Putin Summit
WhatsApp is rolling out a feature that looks a lot like Telegram.
Investigations Reveal Rise in ‘Sex-for-Rent’ Listings Across Canada Exploiting Vulnerable Tenants
Chinese and Indian Leaders Pursue Amity Amid Global Shifts
European Union Plans for Ukraine Deployment
ECB Warns Against Inflation Complacency
Concerns Over North Cyprus Casino Development
Shipping Companies Look Beyond Chinese Finance
Rural Exodus Fueling European Wildfires
China Hosts Major Security Meeting
Chinese Police Successfully Recover Family's Savings from Livestream Purchases
Germany Marks a Decade Since Migrant Wave with Divisions, Success Stories, and Political Shifts
Liverpool Defeat Arsenal 1–0 with Szoboszlai Free-Kick to Stay Top of Premier League
Prince Harry and King Charles to Meet in First Reunion After 20 Months
Chinese Stock Market Rally Fueled by Domestic Investors
×