Rishi Sunak fights to keep PM dream alive as Liz Truss given 90% chance of winning Tory leadership
RISHI Sunak today fights to keep his PM dreams alive — after rival Liz Truss was given a 90 per cent chance of winning the Tory leadership battle.
A poll showed twice as many Tory voters want the Foreign Secretary in charge — but she insisted she’s not complacent.
In West Sussex today, Mr Sunak aims to woo Tory grassroots by declaring war on “woke nonsense” and promising to protect British freedoms.
He will say: “What’s the point in stopping the bulldozers in the green belt if we allow left-wing agitators to take a bulldozer to our history, our traditions and our fundamental values?
“Whether it’s pulling down statues of historic figures, replacing the curriculum with anti-British propaganda, or rewriting the English language so we can’t even use words like ‘man woman or mother’ without being told we’re offending someone?”
A Team Truss source said of his anti-woke battle cry: “It’s nice to see the former Chancellor get on board with the agenda that Liz has been talking about for years.”
Mr Sunak will promise to safeguard women-only spaces and sports as well as removing the legal basis of people self-identifying as another gender.
It came after Ms Truss got the biggest cheer at a hustings on Thursday for vowing a tough stance on .
Last night Mr Sunak braved a Channel 4 grilling from Andrew Neil. Ms Truss declined as it was her 22nd wedding anniversary.
Mr Neil accused Mr Sunak of whacking workers with taxes instead of affluent pensioners.
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He also reeled off Mr Sunak’s U-turns on VAT, the windfall tax and National Insurance, blasting: “It’s chaos not tax reform.”
But Mr Sunak defended his three years in the Treasury and dodged any knockout blow.
Ballots start landing on 160,000 Tory members doorsteps on Monday though the vote deadline is September 2.
Party grandee Michael Portillo told LBC: “It is slipping away from Rishi.”
Betting firm Smarkets yesterday gave Mr Sunak a ten per cent chance of becoming the next PM — crashing from 40 per cent last week.
A Techne poll of Tory voters found Ms Truss’ bumper tax cuts plan was preferred to Mr Sunak’s more cautious approach by 60 to 29 per cent.
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She cautioned in Norfolk yesterday: “I’m not at all complacent. I’m fighting for every vote.”
One-time leadership contender Tom Tugendhat last night declared for Ms Truss.
