Tories must aim to be broad church, urges James Cleverly

Rules for the contest are yet to be decided, with some Tories arguing that the current system, under which MPs choose two contenders to go before a vote of party activists, should be overhauled.

Some Tories have said party members should lose their casting vote on the winner – a move that would require changing the party’s constitution, and is likely to be fiercely resisted by MPs on the right of the party.

Bob Blackman, the newly-elected chair of the 1922 committee that will set the leadership election rules, said members should get the “ultimate say”.

Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, he added he wanted potential candidates to get “exposure in Parliament” so other MPs, as well as party members, can see how they perform in opposition.

Surveys of party members for ConservativeHome, a popular website among activists, have suggested Ms Badenoch has the highest approval ratings among members of the mooted leadership contenders.

This was also borne out in a survey by pollsters YouGov for researchers at Sussex University and Queen Mary University of London, the first such poll of Tory members opinion since last week’s election.

It put Ms Badenoch as the most popular, followed by Ms Braverman, Mr Tugendhat and then Mr Cleverly.