Reeves sets out Labour’s economic credentials as the Tories shred theirs

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The list of those hoping to replace Boris Johnson has been reduced to eight: Rishi Sunak, Liz Truss, Penny Mordaunt, Kemi Badenoch, Nadhim Zahawi, Tom Tugendhat, Jeremy Hunt and Suella Braverman. Each secured the required 20 nominations from Tory MPs by 6pm last night to secure a place on the ballot. Conservative MPs are expected to take part in the first round of voting at 1.30pm. Those who receive fewer than 30 votes will drop out of the race. Those who do will go on to successive rounds of voting, starting tomorrow, to whittle down the list to a final two. We should have a result on the first ballot at around 5pm.

Ministers sparked outrage from opposition parties and constitutional experts alike yesterday when they blocked Labour’s attempt to oust Johnson sooner than the Tories planned. The opposition party had been pushing for a no-confidence vote in the government to be considered by MPs today. But, in a significant break with convention, ministers refused to allow time in the parliamentary schedule. It is worth noting that the last time Labour brought such a motion, during Theresa May’s premiership in 2019, the vote was held the next day.

That the motion has been blocked does not make much difference to the survival of Johnson until September (when the Tory leadership election result is expected). If passed, the motion could have brought down the government and theoretically led to an election – but it was expected to fail as Conservatives voted against. The point was to force Tory MPs, and the potential future Prime Minister, to risk looking like a hypocrite by calling for Johnson to go one week but backing him in a no-confidence vote the next.

Rachel Reeves will use a speech today to set out the “iron-clad” fiscal rules Labour would follow in government to protect public finances and grow the economy – including a promise to only borrow to invest and a commitment to cut the country’s debt burden. Making the most of the ongoing blue-on-blue action, she will argue that Labour has a plan to “reboot” the economy while the Tory leadership hopefuls have “shredded” any sense that the Conservatives are the party of economic responsibility. “The level of unfunded tax cuts being bandied about this week would blow a massive hole in the public finances,” she is expected to warn.

Also on LabourList, Dr Gerry Mitchell has written on the continuing crisis in care: “The clapping might have stopped, and everyone moved on with their lives since the lockdowns, but our need for care is not going away.” And, away from the shenanigans in Westminster, Paul Nowack has been elected to succeed outgoing TUC general secretary Frances O’Grady. He will become general secretary designate at TUC congress in September before officially assuming the role in January 2023.

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