Image source, Stefan Rousseau/PA Wire

Andrea Leadsom has told a lunch in Westminster she would "never say never" to the prospect of a second Scottish independence referendum.

"I do not think it's in their interest, but on the other hand I am a big believer in devolution," she said.

"I am not going to stand here and utterly rule it out because I think that that is disrespectful.

"But I would very strongly fight against a second referendum, which I don't think is in the interest of Scotland and it's definitely not in the interests of the UK.

"What I think we have to be doing is promote the strength of the UK working together far stronger, far more than we have done and I have a number of policy areas that I would use to try and make that happen."

The 1922 Committee hustings for the leadership candidates is under way.

Environment Secretary Michael Gove is the first up.

Our correspondent has his ear pressed to the door...

Andrea Leadsom, leadership hopeful, was asked a short time ago whether she would allow a second independence referendum if Scottish Parliament voted to ask for powers to hold it.

"Never say never", she replied, adding that it would be "subject to negotiation" as she is a "believer in sovereignty".

Here is how the candidates are doing in terms of gathering support from their colleagues.

So far 204 MPs (65%) have come public with their preference.

• Boris Johnson: 69
• Jeremy Hunt: 31
• Michael Gove: 30
• Dominic Raab: 21
• Sajid Javid: 18
• Matt Hancock: 15
• Mark Harper: 6
• Esther McVey: 5
• Rory Stewart: 5
• Andrea Leadsom: 4

Health warning: It is a secret ballot so it would be possible for an MP to declare preference for one candidate in public but actually vote for a different one in the privacy of the voting booth.

It might also be worth remembering that the Conservative parliamentary party has been described as "the most duplicitous electorate in the world".

Image source, PA

Former leader of the Liberal Democrats Nick Clegg has been speaking at The Times CEO Summit about the Conservative leadership race.

"I think the chances of a no-deal outcome have accelerated because the Conservative Party, as they always do, have put their own survival ahead of the survival of the union of the United Kingdom," he said.

"And they decided that delivering Brexit, however that economically impacts today, is absolutely imperative for their survival."

Mr Clegg, who is now head of global affairs and communications at Facebook, said "the Lazarus-like rise of the Lib Dems" at May's local and European elections was "obviously a sign of how this Brexit question is causing convulsions in British politics".

Image source, Reuters

Boris Johnson has attracted some criticism for avoiding public appearances and questions from the media.

However, on Wednesday he will be holding a press conference as he launches his leadership campaign.

The BBC's Vicki Young says the other candidates have been trying to define themselves against Mr Johnson - even without him being very present in the race so far.

"When other contenders say it it is time for a grown up, or time for someone sensible, it is not that coded - they mean Boris Johnson."

BBC deputy political editor John Pienaar notes that Mark Harper promised to "bust a gut" to deliver Brexit.

"However, Theresa May busted more than a gut - she busted her premiership making the same attempt," he says.

"Yet Parliament shows no sign of accepting the idea of allowing the government to leave with no deal.

"The leadership candidates are making plenty of promises, but have no clear route to the kind of destination that is being mapped out.

"We know the character of the Conservative membership electorate - they are a Breixteer crowd - hence the tone of the promises.

"Of course, at some point these promises will have to be addressed - including the spending promises being thrown in along the way to the dismay of those in the Treasury."

House of Commons
Parliament

Whilst today's political drama is likely to come from outside the chamber, Parliament is sitting today - although the agenda in the Commons is quite light.

Conservative MP Ed Vaizey has just proposed a bill under the ten-minute rule , externalcalling for an Ombudsman investigation into Atomic Energy Authority pension transfers.

MPs will now be asked to approve statutory instruments on consumer rights and child support.

Later today, there will be a general debate on a review of the UK's progress towards meeting the UN's 2030 sustainable development goals.

The candidates in the Tory leadership race have been confirmed, with 10 running to become the next prime minister.

But there are various hurdles still to come for the candidates, and who gets the final say? Our correspondent Jessica Parker explains.

• Rory Stewart is due to launch his campaign on the Southbank in London
• The 1922 Committee of backbench Tory MPs will hold a leadership hustings

• Andrea Leadsom launched her leadership bid by insisting that leaving the EU on 31 October is, for her, "a hard red line"
• Also launching his campaign, Mark Harper said Brexit could not be solved by "threatening no deal" and promising to leave on 31 October was "not credible"
• Michael Gove told the Times' Rachel Sylvester that he models himself on US President Teddy Roosevelt
• Sajid Javid told the Evening Standard trying to slow down the number of stop and searches was "crazy" if it is proven that it "works". He also said he was open to rewriting some of the UK's immigration rules if elected
• First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said the chances of the House of Commons reaching a compromise over Brexit had “all but disappeared”
• In Brussels, the EU's chief Brexit negotiator, Michel Barnier, insisted "a new prime minister will not change the problem" around the withdrawal deal
• ITV's Lorraine Kelly said she disagreed with Esther McVey on LGBT rights

And finally...

• Mark Harper struggled to choose between fighting a horse-sized duck or 100 duck -sized horses on BBC Politics Live
• Andrea Leadsom admitted to enjoying Love Island - particularly the episode where the contestants look after dolls

Image source, Facebook

Older people make up more than half of Conservative Party members, hence Dominic Raab's focus on them. Read more.

BBC Politics Live
BBC2's lunchtime political programme

Mark Harper now takes questions from the Politics Live audience, some more surreal than others:

• Would you scrap HS2?: "I would keep it and would make sure it is value for money."
• Do you regret the 'go home vans'?: "In government you should try stuff and if it doesn't work you don't do it again."
• Who is Mark Harper?: "My obscurity is an advantage - it would encourage people to look again at the Conservative Party."
• Do you know the difference between West Ham and Aston Villa?: "I'm not a football expert."
• Would you rather fight one horse-sized duck or 1,000 duck-sized horses?: He avoids answering that final question.

Home Secretary Sajid Javid formally launches his candidacy on Wednesday, but in an interview with the Evening Standard , external- run now, of course, by former Tory MP George Osborne - he says he is “very open minded” about having different immigration rules for different regions depending on need.

He also says he could drop a policy requiring EU migrants wanting to come to the UK to earn at least £30,000.

On law and order, Mr Javid says he thought it was "crazy" for the police to be "encouraged to use less stop and search if it works". The use of stop-and-search tactics fell significantly under Theresa May.

Jeremy Corbyn endured a "heated" meeting with his MPs last night in which he was criticised by several of them for his leadership on anti-Semitism and Brexit.

Marie Rimmer told him people "who have worked with you for ages" were turning away while Jess Phillips said those "in the cult of Corbyn" were protected.

Labour MP Anna Turley was asked about it, and while she wasn't there, she says she heard it may have been the fieriest PLP meeting in a long time.