Jenrick becomes third Tory leadership candidate

Former cabinet minister Robert Jenrick has joined the race for the Conservative Party leadership, promising to win back Reform UK voters who deserted the Tories in the recent general election.

The former housing secretary and immigration minister is the third contender to announce his candidacy, following ex-Home Secretary James Cleverly and former security minister Tom Tugendhat.

The 42-year-old was an ally of former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, but resigned from his cabinet last December arguing the government's Rwanda legislation did not go far enough.

Mr Jenrick's campaign team say he has already secured the support of the 10 Tory MPs needed to formally enter the race.

Once seen as a centrist figure and close ally of Mr Sunak, Mr Jenrick has since moved to the right.

His resignation from Mr Sunak's government for not being sufficiently tough on migration marked a pivotal moment.

Since then, Mr Jenrick has championed strict immigration controls, advocating the UK's withdrawal from the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) as a way to regain border sovereignty.

In recent months, he has been seen as an ally of Suella Braverman, his former Home Office boss who is also believed to be considering a leadership campaign.

Managing Mr Jenrick's campaign is Danny Kruger, an influential MP also on the right of the party.

In statement Mr Kruger said: ‘’To have any path back to government we must win back those voters we have lost - across the board but particularly to Reform.

"At the same time we have to bring our party together, united behind one set of coherent Conservative principles.

"The British people need to be convinced that we are the most responsible and competent party of government for us to have any chance of winning in 2029, especially when we know Labour are set to fail on so many important issues for our country.

"Rob Jenrick will do that. He has the energy, temperament and policy agenda to take on our rivals and lead us back to power in five years."

Mr Jenrick will formally launch his campaign on 2 August.