Penny Mordaunt joins Tory leadership fray as candidates pledge tax cuts

Penny Mordaunt has launched her bid for the Conservative leadership (PA)

Conservative leadership candidates have come out swinging with pledges to slash taxes and plough on with controversial Brexit plans as a new contender joined the fray.

International trade minister Penny Mordaunt announced on Sunday morning that she will run for the top job, saying Britain's leadership “needs to become a little less about the leader and a lot more about the ship”.

It means nine Tories have now put themselves forward to replace Boris Johnson as Britain's prime minister, just days after a collapse in party support forced his resignation.

Former health secretaries Jeremy Hunt and Sajid Javid have both pledged to slash corporation tax as they announced separate leadership bids.

The contenders’ timescales for the change are different, with Mr Hunt planning to cut the tax to 15p in his first autumn Budget, while Mr Javid would set a “glide path”.

Mr Javid also said Britain should consider ripping up old EU laws “to make us a more pro-business, wealth-creating, entrepreneurial economy”.

Meanwhile, outsider candidate Tom Tugendhat pledged to back the Northern Ireland Protocol Bill if elected leader.

The EU claims the legislation would breach international law but Mr Tugendhat said he would be prepared to argue for it, telling Sky’s Sophy Ridge on Sunday programme: “I have fought for my country in combat, I have fought for my country in Parliament, and I will keep fighting for my country.”

Mr Hunt also said he would press on with the British government’s controversial plans to overwrite parts of the post-Brexit treaty.

However, he said he hoped with Mr Johnson out of No 10 the “mood music” of Britain’s relations with the EU might change, and “we could legally negotiate some proper changes to the protocol”.

It comes after two serving cabinet ministers, chancellor Nadhim Zahawi and transport secretary Grant Shapps, revealed their intention to run for leader in the space of an hour on Saturday.

In addition to Ms Mordaunt, Mr Hunt, Mr Javid, Mr Zahawi, Mr Shapps and Mr Tugendhat, former chancellor Rishi Sunak, Attorney General Suella Braverman and ex-minister Kemi Badenoch have launched their own bids.

Foreign secretary Liz Truss is also widely expected to stand, with the Mail On Sunday reporting she will seek to advocate “classic Conservative principles” and could declare her candidature as soon as Monday.

Candidates populated the Sunday morning broadcast round, with Mr Hunt, Mr Javid, Mr Shapps and Mr Tugendhat all making appearances to promote their bids.