Former justice minister David Gauke has criticized the current Conservative party leadership contest for failing to address the root causes of the party’s massive defeat in the general election. He believes that the candidates are too afraid of the party membership and are not focusing on the necessary soul-searching that needs to be done. Gauke emphasized the need for leadership, a clear platform, and modernization of the party, something he feels the candidates are not currently demonstrating.
The contenders for the Conservative party leadership include Kemi Badenoch, James Cleverly, Robert Jenrick, Priti Patel, Mel Stride, and Tom Tugendhat. Gauke, who was previously suspended from the party by Boris Johnson in 2019, has now rejoined in order to participate in the leadership contest. He also mentioned the strategy employed by Keir Starmer as a potential model for successful leadership.
In responding to economic news from Scotland, Labour’s secretary of state for Scotland, Kirsty McNeill, noted that while the country’s GDP grew, there is still work to be done. Meanwhile, a group of police officers from Scotland has been deployed to Belfast to support the Police Service of Northern Ireland following recent riots. The deployment comes amid a lull in violence but aims to relieve the exhausted PSNI force.
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