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Tory leadership frontrunner Boris Johnson is going head to head with his challenger Jeremy Hunt in the first run-off hustings in Birmingham on Saturday, despite questions over his private life dominating the battle to be the next prime minister.
Police officers were alerted early on Friday to an incident at the home Mr Johnson shares with partner Carrie Symonds, after neighbours said there had been a loud altercation involving screaming, shouting and banging.
Security minister Ben Wallace dismissed the row as a “non-story” and criticised the “lefty neighbours” who alerted the police and media, before deleting his tweet.
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Johnson refuses to answer the question again, prompting another go from Dale. Johnson says people want to know about his “ambitions” and his “character”.
Dale has another go. The crowd boos.
Johnson, having finished his speech, is now speaking to Iain Dale – who has asked him about the domestic row and challenged the candidate to answer a question about the police being called to his home.
Dale says: “If the police are called to your home it’s everybody’s business.”
“That’s a fair point,” says Johnson. But he fails to address the matter directly.
Johnson is now attacking Jeremy Corbyn. “Let’s keep Corbyn out,” he says.
Johnson says he doesn’t welcome a no deal Brexit, but, “we must prepare to come out anyway … and we must prepare to come out on WTO terms.”
He says he can “end the sense of drift and indecision” and deliver Britain’s exit from the EU.
Boris Johnson starts his speech by saying it’s “dark days for our party”, talking about dire Tory poll numbers, saying the Lib Dems and the Brexit Party are “feeding on the decay of the two main parties”. But, he says, “the hour is darkest before dawn”. He says he can defeat Jeremy Corbyn.
The Boris Johnson campaign video shows him visiting people on the doorstep and promising that “deal or no deal we’ll come out on October 31”. He says he wants to “unite our country”. And here’s the man himself…
Boris Johnson will speak first, then Jeremy Hunt, then 30 minutes of questions from Iain Dale and Conservative party members. We are promised campaign videos too.
Tory MP Michael Fabricant has also offered some thoughts, although he appears to have confused Islington with the Camberwell area where Boris Johnson is currently sharing a flat with his partner.
Hustings host Iain Dale has begun speaking, explaining the format and getting ready to introduce Boris Johnson and Jeremy Hunt.
Tory MP and Brexit minister James Cleverly has had his say on the Boris Johnson domestic row, suggesting the police should not have been called.
Jeremy Hunt even found time to roll his own naan bread ahead of this afternoon’s hustings event.
Ahead of his big showdown with Boris Johnson, Jeremy Hunt has popped in for a traditional tandoori mixed grill in Birmingham’s so-called Balti Triangle.
The foreign secretary dropped into Imrans on Sparkbrook’s Ladypool Road, chatting with head chef Usman Afzal Butt and co-owners Irfaan Afzal Butt, Asif Mehmood, and Imran Afzal Butt.
After being shown how to make a lamb achari, Mr Hunt sat down to talk with young party members. Restaurant co-owner Mr Mehmood, a Conservative Party member, remained tight-lipped about whether he would back Mr Hunt or Mr Johnson.
“It’s a big honour for us to have the Foreign Secretary here. Whoever is the leader of the party, I think they would be good for the country. They both have a good view on Brexit and they would both offer good quality leadership.”
Jeremy Hunt has urged his party not to elect a “populist” in at attack aimed at both his rival Boris Johnson and Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn.
Speaking at the Conservative Progress Conference this morning, he said: “Now faced with a hard left populist, we could choose our own populist, or, do even better – and choose our own Jeremy.”
Hunt also warned against putting the “wrong person” in place to negotiate with Brussels. “If we send the wrong person out as our PM there will be no trust, no negotiation, no deal – and if Parliament forces a general election no Brexit.”
The challenger claimed he was the man to take on Corbyn, calling the Labour leadership “the most dangerous, ruthless, anti-western, anti-British, hard left cabal”.
The first run-off hustings between Boris Johnson and Jeremy Hunt, organised by Conservative Campaign Headquarters, is set to begin in Birmingham around 3pm.
The event will hosted by broadcaster Iain Dale, who will get the chance to ask the frontrunner about the reports of an altercation at Mr Johnson’s home at his first appearance since details of the row emerged.
Mr Johnson and Mr Hunt will each get to make a short pitch to the audience, followed by questions from both Dale and the Tory members at the event.
Boris Johnson has been helping out at a bakery in the Oxfordshire town of Bicester today alongside local Conservative politicians.
Former Labour home secretary Jacqui Smith – who came under scrutiny following the expenses scandal of 2009 – has tweeted about the discussion over the domestic row at Boris Johnson’s home.
“Violent men exist and infect every social class, nationality, religion, party affiliation and socio-economic background,” says Kirsty Strickland in our latest Voices piece.
Work and pensions secretary Amber Rudd backing Jeremy Hunt’s call for Boris to face him in public debates.
Foreign office minister Andrew Murrison will visit Tehran on 23 June and call for “urgent de-escalation in the region and raise UK and international concerns about Iran’s regional conduct” during talks with the government.
The trip was announced after Donald Trump said the US was “cocked and loaded” to retaliate against Iran for downing an American drone, but cancelled the strikes 10 minutes before they were to be carried out on Thursday after being told 150 people could die.
It comes amid continuing tension between the UK and Iran over the treatment of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, a British-Iranian dual citizen who has been detained in Iran since April 2016.
Speaking about Mr Murrison’s planned visit, Ms Zaghari-Ratcliffe’s husband Richard Ratcliffe said: “I’ve been asked how hopeful I am. I’m not sure if I’m hopeful, but certainly will be watching very closely to see how things develop and what comes back.” Mr Ratcliffe is on day eight of a hunger strike outside the Iranian Embassy in London in support of his wife.
Senior Labour MP Mary Creagh said the incident raised questions, saying: “We have seen in the past, with Boris Johnson, that he seems to have a problem with women.”
Following the incident, the shadow Brexit secretary Keir Starmer tweeted: “Was there ever a man less suited to be prime Minister?”
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