Beautiful Virgin Islands

Wednesday, Sep 03, 2025

Stop toxic politics: Tory leader Mordaunt

Stop toxic politics: Tory leader Mordaunt

Conservative leadership hopeful Penny Mordaunt has called for an end to toxic politics, saying the focus needs to be on picking a new prime minister.
She told the BBC there were a "number of smears going on in the papers" and hit back at claims that she had ever backed gender self-identification.

Mordaunt is one of five candidates left in the leadership race, ahead of the next round of voting on Monday.

Tom Tugendhat meanwhile said the Tories needed a "clean start".

Mordaunt — second in the contest according to the latest round of MPs' votes — told the Sunday Morning program the cost-of-living crisis was her priority.

She was also questioned about her stance on how people should be allowed to legally change their gender, after questions were raised during the contest about her record when she was equalities minister.

Asked by Sophie Raworth whether she thought trans people should have to get a medical diagnosis of gender dysphoria before they could legally change their gender, she said: "Yes."

It came after the Sunday Times said it had seen government papers which appeared to suggest Mordaunt had been in favor of removing at least one element of the medical process required for transgender people to legally transition.

"We all know what's going on. This is the type of toxic politics that people want to get away from," she said.

"The poor British public have a month of this to go, they've got a month of us choosing our prime minister. It's an opportunity for our party to show ourselves at our best. We should be talking and focusing on the issues that concern them."

She said while she was equalities minister "we didn't actually... produce a policy", but her role was to manage a consultation, asking healthcare professionals what they thought of the system.

"My colleagues are very angry and upset that this is how the leadership contest is being dragged down."

Her comments followed her first TV leadership debate on Friday where she clashed with fellow candidates Kemi Badenoch and Liz Truss as they claimed she had backed a change in the rules to allow self-identification.

Mordaunt was equalities minister from April 2018 to July 2019. Truss took up the post in September 2019, while Badenoch joined the department as junior equalities minister from February 2020 to July 2022.

Speaking before Sunday's interview Badenoch's campaign manager said Mordaunt still had questions to answer on the issue.

MP Lee Rowley asked whether Mordaunt had agreed with self-ID but "is now saying that she didn't".

Suella Braverman — who also ran for the leadership but has been knocked out — told Times Radio she thought Mordaunt was "woke" — and she disagreed with her views on "trans ideology".

Woke is an informal term from the US, meaning alert to injustice and discrimination in society, but it is often used in a derogatory way to criticize someone for a certain set of views.

Mordaunt said she would not set out detailed tax and spending plans at this stage, saying the contest was the "wrong place to do it".

But she said she planned to halve VAT on petrol and raise tax thresholds — saying they represented a "modest" set of changes to help people who are struggling.

She said the fuel VAT plan would be cost-neutral, something Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab questioned on Sky News, saying he was not sure such suggestions were "particularly credible".

Mordaunt acknowledged that her plans to cut taxes would lead to increased government borrowing to fund day-to-day spending, saying: "We will have to do that for some time. The important thing is that debt (to GDP) ratio will fall over time."

Tugendhat — the last-placed contender among MPs and the only one not to have held a ministerial post under Boris Johnson — said he would cut fuel duty by 10p.

It comes after ex-Chancellor Rishi Sunak, who is currently the frontrunner in the race, said inflation was the "number one economic priority" but after that he would introduce tax cuts.

Speaking on Sky News, former Conservative leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith appealed for all the candidates in the leadership race to be judged on their record and achievements.

"The one person I don't know what her big achievements are is Penny [Mordaunt]," he said. "I don't have any problem with her, I have no issues at all.

"But for me the key thing is we're not electing a leader of the Conservative Party that has two years to build their reputation, we are electing someone who will be prime minister on day one."

He said questions should be asked of candidates about their achievements in government, their beliefs and tough decisions they have had to take.
Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Germany in Turmoil: Ukrainian Teenage Girl Pushed to Death by Illegal Iraqi Migrant
United Krack down on human rights: Graham Linehan Arrested at Heathrow Over Three X Posts, Hospitalised, Released on Bail with Posting Ban
Asian and Middle Eastern Investors Avoid US Markets
Ray Dalio Warns of US Shift to Autocracy
Eurozone Inflation Rises to 2.1% in August
Russia and China Sign New Gas Pipeline Deal
China's Robotics Industry Fuels Export Surge
Suntory Chairman Resigns After Police Probe
Gold Price Hits New All-Time Record
Von der Leyen's Plane Hit by Suspected Russian GPS Interference in an Incident Believed to Be Caused by Russia or by Pro-Peace or by Anti-Corruption European Activists
UK Fintechs Explore Buying US Banks
Greece Suspends 5% of Schools as Birth Rate Drops
Apollo to Launch $5 Billion Sports Investment Vehicle
Bolsonaro Trial Nears Close Amid US-Brazil Tension
European Banks Push for Lower Cross-Border Barriers
Poland's Offshore Wind Sector Attracts Investors
Nvidia Reveals: Two Mystery Customers Account for About 40% of Revenue
Woody Allen: "I Would Be Happy to Direct Trump Again in a Film"
Pickles are the latest craze among Generation Z in the United States.
Deadline Day Delivers Record £125m Isak Move and Donnarumma to City
Nestlé Removes CEO Laurent Freixe Following Undisclosed Relationship with Subordinate
Giuliani Seriously Injured in Accident – Trump to Award Him the Presidential Medal of Freedom
EU is getting aggressive: Four AfD Candidates Die Unexpectedly Ahead of North Rhine-Westphalia Local Elections
Lula and Putin Hold Strategic BRICS Discussions Ahead of Trump–Putin Summit
WhatsApp is rolling out a feature that looks a lot like Telegram.
Investigations Reveal Rise in ‘Sex-for-Rent’ Listings Across Canada Exploiting Vulnerable Tenants
Chinese and Indian Leaders Pursue Amity Amid Global Shifts
European Union Plans for Ukraine Deployment
ECB Warns Against Inflation Complacency
Concerns Over North Cyprus Casino Development
Shipping Companies Look Beyond Chinese Finance
Rural Exodus Fueling European Wildfires
China Hosts Major Security Meeting
Chinese Police Successfully Recover Family's Savings from Livestream Purchases
Germany Marks a Decade Since Migrant Wave with Divisions, Success Stories, and Political Shifts
Liverpool Defeat Arsenal 1–0 with Szoboszlai Free-Kick to Stay Top of Premier League
Prince Harry and King Charles to Meet in First Reunion After 20 Months
Chinese Stock Market Rally Fueled by Domestic Investors
Israeli Airstrike in Yemen Kills Houthi Prime Minister
Ukrainian Nationalist Politician Andriy Parubiy Assassinated in Lviv
Corporate America Cuts Middle Management as Bosses Take On Triple the Workload
Parents Sue OpenAI After Teen’s Death, Alleging ChatGPT Encouraged Suicide
Amazon Faces Lawsuit Over 'Buy' Label on Digital Streaming Content
Federal Reserve Independence Questioned Amid Trump’s Push to Reshape Central Bank
British Politics Faces Tumultuous Autumn After Summer of Rebellions and Rising Farage Momentum
US Appeals Court Rules Against Most Trump-Era Tariffs
UK Sought Broad Access to Apple Users’ Data, Court Filing Reveals
UK Bank Shares Dive Over Potential Tax on Sector
Germany’s Auto Industry Sheds 51,500 Jobs in First Half of 2025 Amid Deepening Crisis
Bruce Willis Relocated Due to Advanced Dementia
×