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Louise Thomas
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Kemi Badenoch has officially launched her Tory leadership campaign with a promise to “not shut up”, reigniting a row with Doctor Who actor David Tennant.
The shadow housing secretary railed against the “cultural establishment trying to keep Conservatives down” and promised to “take the fight to Doctor Who or whoever and not let them try to keep us down”.
In a video teeing up her leadership launch in Westminster, Ms Badenoch used a clip of the actor saying he wished she would “shut up” and that he hoped for a world in which the MP “doesn’t exist anymore”.
Mr Tennant’s comments sparked a row at the time, with then prime minister Rishi Sunak intervening to say “if you’re calling for women to shut up and wishing they didn’t exist, you are the problem”.
And Ms Badenoch hopes the spat will help her run on an anti-establishment ticket in the leadership race. In her video, Ms Badenoch said: “No I will not shut up, when you have that kind of cultural establishment trying to keep Conservatives down, you need someone like me who is not afraid of Doctor Who or whoever.
“Who is going to take the fight to them and not let them try to keep us down. That is not going to happen with me.”
Officially launching her leadership bid on Monday, Ms Badenoch will lash out at Labour and call for change in the Conservative Party as she launches her Tory leadership campaign in Westminster.
The shadow communities secretary, the bookmakers’ favourite to replace Rishi Sunak, will say her party has to “focus on renewal” to be ready to return to power.
She will say the Conservatives “can’t just sit around pointing out how terrible Labour are” and must not “keep having the same policy arguments from the last parliament”.
Leadership rival James Cleverly will use his own speech to say “we must think and act like Conservatives again”, arguing for a smaller state.
MPs return to Westminster on Monday after the summer break, with the candidates seeking support ahead of the first round of voting in the Tory leadership race on Wednesday.
The build-up to the ballot has already seen major speeches by candidates Tom Tugendhat, Dame Priti Patel and Robert Jenrick in recent days.
Both Mrs Badenoch and Mr Cleverly are making campaign speeches on Monday.
Mrs Badenoch is expected to say: “The British people are yearning for something better and this Labour government is not it.
“They have no ideas. At best they are re-announcing things we have already done.
“At their worst they are clueless, irresponsible and dishonest: trying to pull the wool over the eyes of the British public about the state of the UK finances, placing political donors into civil service jobs and pretending they had no plans to cut pensioner benefits before the election – and now doing so to cover the cost of pay rises for the unions with no promise of reform.”
She will add: “If the Conservatives want to become worthy of the British people’s trust again, we can’t just sit around pointing out how terrible Labour are … fun as it is.
“We can’t just keep having the same policy arguments from the last parliament. We lost. We are not in power.
“Labour will fail; and when that time comes, and the British people are looking for change, we have to be that change.
“We have to focus on renewal. The renewal of our party, our politics and our thinking.”
Mr Cleverly will say the Tories “must get our act together” to present solutions to “an unstable world, global migration and a crisis of confidence in capitalism”.
He will say: “That means being honest and realistic about the role of the state. About what it should and can do, and what it should not and cannot. The state should focus on doing fewer things very well, not everything badly.
“We accept that the state has a primary duty to protect its people and its borders. But Conservatives must be honest about the trade-offs in doing these things properly.”
He will argue for a “family-first society” rather than looking to the state as the first port of call when a problem arises.
“We must think and act like Conservatives again. Demonstrate that we understand the challenges our people and our country face, and provide the solutions to deliver a brighter future for our country.
“We accomplished much in Government, but our division and behaviour obscured the victories and compounded the mistakes.
“I will tackle the problems in front of us with Conservative solutions and make the UK the greatest power in Europe. Strong in defence of our people, our allies and our values on the international stage. With security and prosperity at home.”
Writing in the Daily Telegraph, Mr Cleverly said he wants to abolish stamp duty on all homes, calling it a “bad tax”.
The tax is paid on purchases of homes for more than £250,000, or £425,000 for a first-time buyer.
“I want our ambition to be to abolish stamp duty for residential properties completely,” Mr Cleverly said.
“It’s a bad tax that is stopping too many people getting on the housing ladder.”
The field of six candidates – which also includes Mel Stride – will be whittled down to four by the time of the Conservative conference at the end of the month.
After that, MPs will carry out further rounds of voting to select two final candidates for the Conservative members to choose between, with the result announced on November 2.
