WATCH: Sajid Javid becomes ninth candidate to enter Tory leadership race
3 min read
Sajid Javid has become the latest senior Tory to enter the race to succeed Theresa May as party leader.
The Home Secretary said he would ensure the Government would "get on and deliver Brexit to ensure there is renewed trust in our democracy" if he becomes Prime Minister.
He became the ninth candidate to join the contest just hours after his party suffered its worst national election performance since the 19th century.
The Tories lost 15 MEPs and saw their vote share slump to less than 10% as millions of their traditional supporters flocked to the Brexit Party.
In a video posted on Twitter, Mr Javid said: "As last night’s results made all too clear, we must get on and deliver Brexit to ensure there is renewed trust in our democracy.
“We must bridge divides to heal communities, reminding us of our shared values as a United Kingdom…
“I love my country, and my pledge to the British people is to be a leader who is always straight, fighting for their interests.
“I entered politics to do my best for this country, the country that has done so much for me. As Prime Minister, I would strive to achieve that ambition every single day.”
The Bromsgrove MP will battle against colleagues including Boris Johnson, Jeremy Hunt, Matt Hancock, Michael Gove, Andrea Leadsom and Esther McVey for the Tory crown.
"VERY DISAPPOINTING NIGHT"
Prime Minister Theresa May accepted the European election result was a “very disappointing night” for the Conservatives.
She said: “Some excellent MEPs have lost their seats, some excellent candidates missed out.
“But Labour have also suffered big losses. It shows the importance of finding a Brexit deal, and I sincerely hope these results focus minds in Parliament.”
Boris Johnson – the bookies’ favourite to win the Tory leadership battle – warned the Conservatives risk being “fired” over Brexit.
"The message from these results is clear," he wrote in his column for the Daily Telegraph. "If we go on like this, we will be fired: dismissed from the job of running the country.
"The only way to avert that outcome is to honour the result of the 2016 referendum, and come out of the EU; and that means doing it properly.”
Foreign Secretary Mr Hunt also acknowledged the “painful” result and that there was an “existential risk” to the party if it did not “get Brexit done”.
Meanwhile, former Cabinet minister Priti Patel, who is considering her own bid to become the next Prime Minister, launched a scathing attack on the Government’s “failure” over Brexit.
Speaking to BBC she said: “This isn’t just about changing the pilot, we need real change now because there’s ben collective failure by this government, by this cabinet who sat back and been part of the problem here.
“They’ve been complicit in supporting whether it’s Chequers, the Withdrawal Agreement, everything in terms of discussions with the opposition party, the Labour party over Brexit.
“And now this final humiliation is just not acceptable. The cabinet quite frankly failed in actually being direct in standing up for Brexit and failed in actually questioning the leadership approach as well over Brexit.
“I think now it’s matter of time we’ll see change and I think that change will come.”
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