Rishi Sunak leads PM race as Boris Johnson flies back to London

BBC News:

Rishi Sunak is close to reaching the 100 MP nominations needed to enter the race to be the next Conservative leader and prime minister.

The ex-chancellor has 93 endorsements from Tory MPs so far, though a campaign source said he had already reached 100.

Former leader Boris Johnson, second with 44 backers, is poised to enter the contest to succeed Liz Truss and is flying back from a Caribbean holiday.

Penny Mordaunt was the first to declare, counting 21 supporters so far.

Trade Minister Sir James Duddridge, who is backing Mr Johnson, told BBC News: “He is coming home and is up for it.”

Neither Mr Sunak nor Mr Johnson have officially launched their campaigns, but this has not stopped backers declaring their support.

Mr Johnson is on a flight back from a holiday in the Dominican Republic, and is due to arrive in London on Saturday morning.

A BBC reporter on the flight says some passengers who tried to take selfies were stopped from doing so by his sizeable security team.

MPs will be waiting to see if he makes a statement when he lands.

Sources from Mr Sunak’s campaign told BBC News he had already reached the 100 nominations needed to make it onto the ballot paper.

Mr Sunak secured support from a number of senior colleagues, including former chancellor and health secretary Sajid Javid, Security Minister Tom Tugendhat and former health secretary Matt Hancock.

“It is abundantly clear that Rishi Sunak has what it takes to match the challenges we face – he is the right person to lead our party and take the country forward,” Mr Javid said.

Another backer, Tobias Ellwood, said he was the 100th MP to endorse Mr Sunak, saying: “Time for centrist, stable, fiscally responsible government offering credible domestic & international leadership.”

Mr Johnson’s supporters said the former prime minister had “momentum and support”. Mr Duddridge said: “He is the only election winner we have that has a proven track record in London, on Brexit, and in gaining the mandate we have now.”