My op-ed in today’s Times Red Box, endorsing Liz Truss:
There have been a lot of twists and turns in this leadership race. It seems more than a month ago that the starting gun was fired by the prime minister’s resignation. Since then, we have had parliamentary hustings, TV debates and membership hustings — not to mention Twitter spats and WhatsApp wars.
It has been a tough campaign for everybody. There has been a lot of in-depth policy debate about the future of our party and country, much of which has been productive and insightful. And it’s important that there has been a contest, because it’s right that the candidates have been tested under pressure — we need to know that our next prime minister has what it takes to lead. But there has been a darker side to the campaign too. The blue-on-blue attacks have been bruising and have left me concerned for the good reputation of our party.
Because of this, I have come to the conclusion that, above all, what we need out of this leadership campaign is unity. The whole party — our members, councillors and activists, and MPs — will need to pull together after the division of the past few months. Without that unity we cannot deliver for our party or our country, and we certainly cannot defeat Sir Keir Starmer’s Labour Party.
If we in the Conservative Party are to have any hope of winning the next election, seats such as mine in the red wall will be indispensable. Before I won my seat in 2019, Newcastle-under-Lyme had returned a Labour MP at every election for more than 100 years. That all changed three years ago because my constituents became fed up with not being listened to.
For years, Newcastle-under-Lyme had been taken for granted by the Labour Party and this came to a head in 2019 when, following our vote for Brexit and the ensuing holdup by the political establishment, my constituents turned to the Conservatives.
A key factor in this shift was the pledge that we made as a party to finally give areas such as mine the attention, investment and opportunity they deserve. The goal to level up spoke to my constituents and their concerns — that the area was missing out on the growth and prosperity that the south, in particular London, have enjoyed for years.
They watched as big cities and other areas progressed and benefited from serious investment, private and public, while their own town was forgotten and got left behind. In 2019 I pledged, alongside my Conservative colleagues, to turn this around. Indeed, after getting Brexit done, it was to be our government’s guiding mission: restoring not only investment but also local pride in towns such as Newcastle.
Since then, a pandemic and war in Ukraine have changed the picture dramatically. But the problems we are trying to address remain the same — in fact the past three years has made them more apparent and in need of addressing than ever before.
We need, with increasing urgency, to deliver on our promises to level up. We have two years until the next election, and if we are to have any hope of beating Labour and continuing to be able to deliver for our country, this is an absolute must. That is why I am supporting Liz Truss to be our next prime minister.
Once Tom Tugendhat, my initial choice, was eliminated, I was leaning towards supporting Rishi Sunak. But, having observed the campaign, I now believe that Liz is the best person to unite the party, deliver on our promises to level up, and beat Keir Starmer in the red wall seats.
She has the experience to deliver from day one and the bold plan we need to tackle our problems head on and get our economy back on track. And her conservative plan for levelling up will do wonders for spreading opportunity around the country. It is not one based on handouts or taking from one place to give to another, but one that will harness the power of local communities and industries. And her low-tax, low-regulation investment zones will attract the businesses that bring prosperity and opportunity.
With Liz’s plan we can build an aspiration nation, where everyone has the same chance to succeed regardless of where they are from. This is exactly what it will take to defeat Keir Starmer. Current polling suggests that Liz can beat Keir in a general election but we know how quickly this can change. What really matters is what we do with the next two years and whether we deliver on the promises we made to constituencies such as mine. I believe that Liz Truss can, and will, unite our party so that we deliver for the whole United Kingdom.