Liz Truss, who went to school in Leeds, has made it into the final pairing of the Conservative Party leadership election after narrowly sneaking past her rival Penny Mordaunt. In the fifth and final ballot of Tory MPs, Mrs Truss secured 113 votes - beating the Trade Minister by eight.
The former Roundhay School pupil, who is currently the Foreign Secretary, is now just one vote away from replacing Boris Johnson as Prime Minister along with her Tory colleague Rishi Sunak, the MP for Richmond. Their fate will now be decided by the vote of Tory party members, with the result expected to be announced on September 5.
Earlier this week, Mrs Truss came under fire following a Tory leadership debate over remarks she made about growing up and going to school in Rounday. During the hustings, the mum-of-two said she saw "children who failed and were let down by low expectations" and she became a Conservative after being let down herself at school.
Read more: Liz Truss facing backlash in Leeds after 'blaming' Roundhay School for 'letting kids down'
Her comments were heavily criticised by people in the city, including Labour councillor Jonathan Pryor. He tweeted: "Liz Truss blaming teachers and her Leeds school for her education again - forgetting that when she was at school the Tories were in power so the underfunding is on them…"
Labour MP Alex Sobel, who represents Leeds North West, also slammed Mrs Truss, saying: "The main issue with Liz Truss’s stories about her Leeds school is she was educated entirely under a Tory Government. The school she went to was fully refurbished under Labour and was a much better school after she left. So the takeaway is vote Labour if you want better schools."
When Mrs Truss attended the school, Ofsted rated it as "satisfactory". However, it has since been rated as "outstanding" by the inspectorate.
Following the announcement of today's result, Mrs Truss - whose father was a professor at the University of Leeds - tweeted: "Thank you for putting your trust in me. I’m ready to hit the ground from day one."
Later on, a statement from the Foreign Secretary added: "I would like to thank each and every one of my colleagues who have supported me throughout this stage of this contest. I would also like to pay tribute to every candidate who stood for the leadership. Each of them has contributed enormously to the Conservative Party and to public life.
"I am excited to now take to the country to make the case to the Conservative Party about my bold new economic plan that will cut taxes, grow our economy and unleash the potential of everyone in our United Kingdom. As Prime Minister I would hit the ground running from day one, unite the Party and govern in line with Conservative values.
"I am incredibly proud to be a part of the Conservative and Unionist Party and am excited to spend the next few weeks proving to all of our brilliant members exactly why I am the right person to lead it, and our great nation."
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