Politics LIVE: Tom Tugendhat confirms Tory leadership plans as he makes pitch to challenge Nigel Farage

Tom Tugendhat launched his Tory leadership campaign by indicating he would be prepared to leave the European Convention on Human Rights.

The shadow Security Minister became the second Conservative MP to announce they were running after shadow Home Secretary James Cleverley announced he was running.

The MP for Tonbridge denied the party would be split by the contest, because on key issues including the ECHR, gender, taxes, defence and net zero all Tories shared the same “common sense” views.

“We know that if institutions do not serve the British people and make it harder to control our own borders, then we will have to exempt ourselves from them, or leave their jurisdiction,” he wrote in The Telegraph.

“We know what a woman is. We all want lower taxes. We all know national security must come before Treasury spreadsheets. We all know that energy security and household bills come first.

“These are common sense Conservative positions. They are non-negotiable for me and, I would hope, for anyone else who puts themselves forward.”

Meanwhile, a bombshell new poll has found that 9.5 per cent of 18 to 30 year olds backed Reform UK, compared to just eight per cent who voted Tory.

The YouGov poll of 35,000 people found Nigel Farage’s party was the third most popular party among voters aged 30 and under at the election, behind Labour and the Green Party.

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Sadiq Khan hails Ulez expansion after pollution levels drop

Sadiq Khan has claimed a major victory in London as levels of air pollution in the capital have dropped by more than 10 per cent.

The lower emission levels in the city were aided by the expansion of the Ulez scheme which extended across Greater London last August.

According to a new report from City Hall, nitrogen oxide emissions from cars dropped by 13 per cent since last August, while van emissions fell seven per cent.

Read the full story HERE

Great British Energy announces first major policy

Great British Energy, is to partner with the monarchy’s property firm to help speed up the building of offshore wind farms.

The Crown Estate owns the vast majority of Britain’s seabed, stretching up to 12 nautical miles from the mainland, and leases parts of it to wind farm operators.

The Government said on Thursday that GB Energy will help develop future offshore wind projects, as part of its push to hasten the UK’s transition to renewable energy.

It is also designed to reduce the UK’s reliance on energy imported from other countries by generating more of its own electricity.

New poll shows Reform UK third most popular with under 30s

More under-30s voted for Reform UK than the Conservatives at the general election. A YouGov poll of 35,000 voters suggested that 9.5 per cent of 18 to 30-year-olds supported Nigel Farage’s party and eight per cent voted Tory.

According to The Guardian, Nigel Farage’s posts have “garnered more interactions per video than Jeremy Corbyn, Labour’s Zarah Sultana and the Greens’ Carla Denyer put together.”

The Greens won almost 18 per cent of voters aged 30 and under, up from six per cent in 2015.

Tugendhat says he believes he can lead the Tories to an election victory

The Tory leadership contender was asked on BBC Breakfast if he believed he could win an election as leader of the Conservative Party in five years’ time.

He said: “Yes, it is possible to do that. You’ve got to restore trust. You’ve got to demonstrate delivery and you’ve got to be able to listen to the British people to make sure you understand where the challenges are.

“But you can look at what Keir Starmer achieved, frankly, he went from his worst electoral result to his best in five years.

“We can do the same but we need to be united. We need to regain the trust of the British people and we need to be ready to deliver.”