Top Tories quit as leadership race shapes up

Conservative leader Michael Howard lost two members of his shadow cabinet today, as senior Tories began jockeying for position in the race to succeed him.

Leading moderniser Tim Yeo made no secret that he was considering throwing his hat into the ring, as he resigned as shadow environment secretary in order to argue the case for “extensive change” in the party.

And Nicholas Soames quit as shadow defence secretary, saying that he wanted the freedom to speak out on Europe and the environment.

The two men’s departure gives Mr Howard a freer hand as he prepares what is likely be the final reshuffle of his leadership. He announced on Friday that he would stand down once a review of the rules for electing his successor had been completed.

No MPs have yet declared themselves candidates in the race to succeed Mr Howard, but betting is already hotting up, with bookies William Hill slashing the odds on frontrunner David Davis to 5-4 after receiving a number of large wagers on the shadow home secretary, including one punt of £2,000.

One of those expected to challenge for the party’s top job is former foreign secretary Sir Malcolm Rifkind, who was one of 54 new Tory MPs welcomed to Westminster by Mr Howard today.

Sir Malcolm was returned to Parliament in Thursday’s General Election as MP for Kensington and Chelsea after eight years on the sidelines following his defeat in the 1997 Labour landslide.

He stood alongside new faces including 35-year-old Justine Greening, whose triumph in Putney was the first Tory gain on May 5, and the party’s first black MP, Adam Afriyie, who was elected in the safe seat of Windsor.

Greeting them at the main entrance to the Palace of Westminster, Mr Howard hailed the new MPs as “brimming with talent” and predicted that they would pave the way to Conservative victory at the next election.

“They are going to make a huge difference in this new Parliament,” said Mr Howard.

“I am absolutely convinced that this splendid new intake, brimming with talent, is going to set the scene for the next Conservative victory.”

But Mr Yeo warned that the Conservatives still needed to show voters that they had changed from the party which was comprehensively rejected in 1997 in order to make a credible bid for power.

It was “alarming” that support for the party was falling among vital sections of the electorate, like the young and the professionally-successful AB group, he said.

Developing a new agenda, with a focus on the environment, the work-life balance, social justice and individual liberties, was “the first and essential step towards getting back into Government”.

While Mr Howard had got the party’s message across in the Conservatives’ traditionally strong areas like law and order, immigration and taxation, the party had failed to connect with large sectors of the public, said Mr Yeo.

“What we need to do is widen out the issues which we talk about, which we are associated with, so they reach beyond our core voters,” he told the BBC.

“The truth is we have now gone through two elections when we have stuck on around 32-33%. I think it has been too much focus on issues which are of concern to our traditional supporters.”

He acknowledged his fellow Tory MPs may regard his arguments as “complete nonsense”, in which case he would not stand in the leadership contest.

Shadow work and pensions secretary David Willetts said that the Conservative Party had to become more “mainstream”, appealing more to younger people, women and urban voters.

Mr Willetts told the ITV News Channel said: “Part of our problem is that we have put such weight on the individual leader and have not thought about what the character of the Conservative Party is. What do people think the Conservative Party is like?”

Mr Soames brushed off speculation that he was preparing a bid for the prestigious job of chairman of the 1922 Committee of Tory backbenchers, which will play a key role in determining the rules of the leadership election.

“Parliament is going to be much more important now and I want to take an important role on the backbenches,” he said.

“I am not running for chairman of the 1922 Committee. I want to be able to speak about Europe, the environment, a whole series of other issues.”

Michael Ancram, a former Tory leadership contender, declined to comment today on suggestions that he was planning to stand down from the shadow cabinet.

And deregulation spokesman John Redwood – who unsuccessfully stood for the leadership in 1995 and 1997 – refused to say whether he would make a third bid for the top job.

Another potential candidate from the right of the party, Conservative co-chairman Dr Liam Fox, is due to make a major speech tomorrow on the party’s fundamental values.