Summary
Here is a roundup of all the day’s top news stories from Westminster:
- Tory leadership contender Rishi Sunak has again insisted that inflation must be brought under control before the government can consider cutting taxes. Speaking during a visit to Teesside, where he secured the backing of the region’s mayor, Ben Houchen, he dismissed accusations that he had been a “socialist chancellor”.
- Conservative leadership hopeful Penny Mordaunt has been forced to defend her time in government as her rivals step up attacks on her ministerial record. The bookmakers’ favourite to win the race to succeed Boris Johnson as prime minister has accused other campaigns of running “black-ops” briefings against her to damage her chances of reaching the last two of the contest.
- Cabinet Office minister Kit Malthouse has warned that transport services face “significant disruption” owing to the heatwave as he urged people to avoid travelling on Monday and Tuesday. He said steps have been taken to ensure hospitals and ambulances that may come under pressure were prepared.
-
Tom Tugendhat, the one Tory candidate without ministerial experience, said on Saturday he was committed to delivering on Brexit, despite having been a strong Remain supporter in the 2016 referendum. He said there were still important issues relating to the working of the Northern Ireland Protocol which needed to be resolved with the EU.
- Boris Johnson is threatening to set an “early test” for his successor by ensuring they have to face two early byelections as the new Tory leader, the Observer has been told. The prime minister is planning to elevate at least two current MPs to the House of Lords well before the next election, triggering two contests that will test public support for whoever replaces him in Downing Street.
- Sir Tony Blair has issued a rallying call to western nations to come together to develop a coherent strategy to counter the rise of China as “the world’s second superpower”. Delivering the annual Ditchley lecture the former prime minister called for a policy towards Beijing of “strength plus engagement” as he warned the era of western political and economic dominance was coming to an end.
That’s it from me, Tom Ambrose, and indeed the politics live blog for today. Thanks for following along. You can keep across all the latest news from the Tory leadership race and Westminster here.
Goodbye for now.
Updated
Cabinet Office minister Kit Malthouse has warned that transport services face “significant disruption” owing to the heatwave as he urged people to avoid travelling on Monday and Tuesday.
After chairing a meeting of the government’s Cobra committee, Malthouse told the BBC:
Obviously the transport providers are messaging people that they should only travel if they really need to on Monday and Tuesday.
Services are going to be significantly affected. The heat will affect rails, for example, so the trains have to run slower. There may be fewer services. People need to be on their guard for disruption.
If they don’t have to travel, this may be a moment to work from home.
Malthouse said steps have been taken to ensure hospitals and ambulances that may come under pressure were prepared, while schools were being issued with guidance to enable them to remain open, PA reported.
Updated
