The Withdrawal Agreement "is not going to get through Parliament" and the UK needs more time to sort out a Brexit deal, Mark Harper says.

Mr Harper says it would not be sensible to shut down Parliament early - a process known as prorogation - to deliver a no-deal Brexit.

Dominic Raab has not ruled out such a move, whilst another contender, Esther McVey, has said it could be part of a "toolkit" to deliver Brexit on time.

Image source, POOL

Asked how he would deliver new policies in a hung Parliament, Mark Harper says he does not accept that it is impossible to get anything done.

He says it might not be possible to deliver all pre-election pledges in Parliament, but it is possible to set them out and do the "groundwork" to win backing for them.

He says it is his "starting point" that the next general election should not take place until 2022.

Moving onto other policy areas, he's asked whether he would "bring back" grammar schools. He says he would "defend" existing grammars but his focus would be on delivering a good education in all schools.

"I think it's essential that anyone in this race takes part in TV debates," Mark Harper goes on. "I think it’s important that we have that level of scrutiny… I think the public are entitled to see us in action.

"This is the start of the 2022 election campaign," he adds.

Asked what in his background would indicate he is fit to be PM, he says his experience as chief whip will help him get a Brexit deal through the Commons.

He says he would admit he doesn't have as much experience as some of the other candidates, but cabinet big-hitters have failed to deliver Brexit.

Asked whether Boris Johnson should answer questions about whether he has taken illegal drugs, he says all candidates should be prepared to answer questions on the subject.

He says personally he has never taken any illegal drugs, adding: "I don't get invited to those sorts of parties."

Mark Harper is asked whether he should use the UK's military standing as a "stick" when it comes to renegotiating the Brexit deal.

He replies that it would not be sensible to withdraw security co-operation "that keeps us all safe", but it is "worth setting out" what the UK could bring to a post-Brexit relationship.

Asked how many Labour MPs he could get to support a Brexit deal, he says maybe "two handfuls" might come on board.

But he says it will not be possible to get "loads" of Labour MPs to back an agreement, and a formal deal with the party is "never going to happen".

Asked about his chances in the race, Mark Harper says he would admit that he is an "underdog" in the contest, and he is not that well known because things "went well" when he was chief whip.

On what is the most interesting thing about him as a candidate, he says that would be his "working class background". He's the only candidate who went to a comprehensive school and got to Oxford University, he tells the audience.

Asked how he would deliver a change to the backstop plan, he says would "establish a relationship of trust" with Ireland and the EU.

It must be "obvious to them" that a withdrawal agreement including the backstop as it stands will not get through the House of Commons, he adds.

The speech is over, and the floor is open to questions to journalists.

First up, it's an opportunity for a swipe at Boris Johnson when he's asked to respond to the pledges made by other candidates.

He says some of the promises being made are "not going to happen in this Parliament" because there's not a Conservative majority.

Some are also just wrong-headed, he continues. He says personally he would favour tax cuts towards the "lower end of the spectrum".

"I don't think we should be promising more money to higher rate taxpayers."

He repeats the idea that leaving the EU on 31 October is not "possible or credible" and to pretend that it is and not deliver would "put rocket boosters under Nigel Farage".

Continuing, Mark Harper pledges that as PM he would not lead the country into a general election before delivering Brexit.

He says he will not be making "massive commitments" on tax and spending, which he says could "throw away" the Tories' reputation for fiscal responsibility.

He says he'll bring back collective cabinet responsibility and make sure meetings of ministers no longer "leak like a sieve".

Mark Harper says any Brexit deal is unlikely to pass the Commons by a majority of 50 or so votes, adding that it would be more like 10.

He says getting a better Brexit deal will require achieving "credibility" with the Irish government, and using "a bit of stick and a bit of carrot".

He says there could be a majority in the Commons to leave without a deal, but only if ministers demonstrate they have "strained every sinew to get a deal".

Importantly, he adds, it is "not credible" to leave on the terms of a new deal by the existing deadline of 31 October. Renegotiating and getting a deal past MPs will take longer.

Image source, POOL

Mark Harper is straight into a short pitch on why he should be the next Tory leader.

He says Brexit needs to be delivered and the country "governed properly" before the next general election is held.

He says he has a "realistic" and "credible" plan to deliver Brexit - the board behind him says so too.

He adds he is "comfortable" with the idea of leaving without a deal if that is the only way to deliver Brexit, but this would not be his preference.

Mark Harper is on the stage, jacket off, atmosphere informal. Quick speech then questions, he says.

The chief political correspondent of the Guardian shared a picture of his promotional material...

Image source, EPA

Liverpool Mayor Joe Anderson has written an open letter to Tory MPs, urging them not to vote for Esther McVey.

The elected Labour politician also said he has revoked the Liverpool-born MP's “Scouse privileges".

He wrote: "I have seen first hand in Liverpool the devastation inflicted by austerity politics, all the more galling because these pernicious policies have been championed by someone born in this very city, Esther McVey.

"This leadership election must mean that the failed ideology of austerity is finally abandoned.

"For that reason I have today written to every Tory MP making clear why it can’t be Esther McVey."

Ms McVey is a former work and pensions secretary and in that role, oversaw cuts to welfare.

Next we'll be hearing from former Chief Whip Mark Harper, whose campaign launch event will be getting under way shortly.

His team are billing it as an "ask me anything" event, promising that he will make only a short speech before opening the floor up to questions from the press.