Ok I'm Doing A U Turn.......

[ToraToraTora]

BRING BACK BORIS! Penny is still my choice of the rest but it now seems a real possibility that Boris could return. He's the only real big hitter and the party and the country need him back.

[steg]

//..they're looking for a unicorn' //

Maybe they should ask Ruth Davidson then? (the unicorn is the national animal of Scotland.)

[Gromit]

NJ

// what happens if there are four (or more) contenders and none secures the required 100 votes of support? //

No one seems to know. The question has been asked, but there has been no answer. Graham Brady seems to be making new rules up on the hoof.

[bednobs]

it's i presume to make sure there are NOT more than 3 candidates

[New Judge]

//it's i presume to make sure there are NOT more than 3 candidates//

But it won't, will it? As I said, I haven't read the rules but as I understand it, in order to stand for the wider election a nominee has to have the support of 100 MPs. If they don't (as I read it) they cannot stand. Of course, there may be just two candidates, neither of whom may gain 100 votes because, as far as I know, Tory MPs are not compelled to support anybody. I'll have a read up.

[Gromit]

// to make sure there are NOT more than 3 candidates //

But it may result in no candidates. Then what ?

[naomi24]

Gromit, he’s not making the rules up in the hoof and they’re flexible. The committee met days ago in anticipation of Truss’s departure. I posted links earlier.

[naomi24]

Gromit, see my post at 08.26 on TTT’s ‘So who are we backing?’ thread.

[weecalf]

Well I think it sounds better if oris gets the job the there was only two pms this year sounds so much better Eh

[ichkeria]

“So what happens if there are four (or more) contenders and none secures the required 100 votes of support?”

I think what will happen is: the tide won’t suddenly go out on Monday revealing a hotchpotch of candidates: they’ll have it all worked out beforehand. Assuming as I said before that enough MPs are still speaking to each other :-)

[Old_Geezer]

Rules that flexible are vulnerable to abuse. Not that I'd dare suggest it occurs.

I hope they get 20+ contenders.

[naomi24]

They can’t get 20 plus contenders, OG. Each needs 100 nominations and there are less than 400 MPs

The selection process isn’t set in stone but decided individually.

[wiltsman]

The bring back Boris campaign reminds me of one of Einstein's quotatations:

“Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.”

[anneasquith]

I fail to see how anyone could support Boris, he is a blatant liar and it would appear if Boris is popular ,trump is as well with some people. A mystery .

[burlyshirley1]

Yes, I'd support Trump too - bizarre isn't it ?!!

[naomi24]

Wiltsman, if Boris returns I’m not expecting different results. I’m expecting a party that is no longer tearing itself to bits and a leader who leads both at home and on the international stage.

[Ken4155]

Don't tell me the Donald's thrown his hat into the ring?

[Untitled]

then you are expecting something different from last time

[burlyshirley1]

Agree with Naomi ..

[jim360]

He's going to do it isn't he.

Unbelievable. The man's being investigated for deliberately misleading Parliament, an investigation which could well lead to his suspension or even removal as an MP. And we're supposed to believe this is the best the Tory party has to offer? What are they going to, block that investigation?

The whole point of a party system, really, is that the leader is a representative of the party as a whole. So, although obviously some are better than leading than others, there should at least be a broad group of people in that party who could step up and represent. And, apparently, the Tory party no longer believes this is true of itself, as they seem to me to be set to turn to the man they'd thrown out barely a few months ago. That's just tragic.

Never mind that they're seriously overestimating his appeal to the country at large. It worked in 2019 because of unique circumstances, and while I don't doubt that he'd mitigate the scale of a loss compared to, say, Truss, Braverman, or someone like Wallace, a loss is a loss. A party should be bigger than one person. It's frankly ridiculous that Tories feel there's nowhere else to turn.

Also, it seems pretty clear that he's the most divisive of all possible leaders among MPs. Nothing there has changed. At least with Sunak or Mordaunt the Tories can have a graceful loss, dust themselves off, and fight back over the course of a decade or so -- the 1997-2010 cycle again. But returning the ex-PM as leader will tear the Tories apart, plain and simple. And, much as I'm no Tory, that's still a tragedy if it happens. Much as the Tories need Labour to be a functioning opposition, it works the same the other way.

Just back Sunak. He got the big calls in the last few months right -- why can't Tories have some modicum of contrition over that? They didn't listen to him, they backed Truss instead, and lo and behold, Truss messed up just in the way Sunak had warned. I'm not saying he's great either, but I'm not backing him because I think he'd lose or because he'd do a bad job. Instead, there's some pragmatism in his message, and we could all do with that around about now.

[jno]

I assume there's a procedural rule that you can only nominate one person. If there isn't one, then we're in for some squabbling.