Penny Mordaunt is used taking a leap of faith. Back in 2014, on the ITV diving reality show Splash, she twice attempted a daring back somersault from 7.5m ― only to flunk it on both occasions. The result was an early and rather painful exit, with the then junior minister left less red-faced as red all over.
Fast forward eight years and Britain's current international trade secretary has entered another competition ― only this time she is diving not into the blue depths of an Olympic-sized pool, but head first into the "blue" race to succeed Boris Johnson as Tory leader.
Thankfully for Ms Mordaunt, 49, her chances of success in this competition appear far more auspicious, with a Conservative Home poll suggesting she is the preferred candidate of Tory members, just ahead of equalities minister Kemi Badenoch and former UK chancellor Rishi Sunak.
Launching her campaign on Sunday with the nifty and nominatively deterministic slogan PM4PM, Miss Mordaunt said she sees leadership as being "less about the leader and a lot more about the ship" ― a direct rebuke to the omnipresent and obtrusive Mr Johnson.
The nautical reference would also have been carefully calibrated by the former navy reservist, aware that links with the military tend to play well with Tories and the country at large.
With her party rocking like a naval vessel on choppy seas after the catalogue of scandals that bedevilled Mr Johnson's premiership ― partygate perhaps the most damaging ― Ms Mordaunt comes with the promise of discipline, rectitude and old-fashioned conservatism.
"Recently, our party has lost its sense of self," she said in the first major speech of her campaign.
"If I can compare it to being in the Glastonbury audience, when Paul McCartney was playing his set ― we indulged all those new tunes, but what we really wanted was the good old stuff that we all knew the words to: low tax, a small state, personal responsibility."
Mordaunt's early years marred by family tragedy
Penny Mordaunt and twin brother James were born in Torquay, Devon in 1973, the children of a former paratrooper and special needs teacher.
They were raised in the southern UK coastal town of Portsmouth from the age of two and enjoyed a blissful childhood until their mother died from breast cancer when they were only 15.
Ms Mordaunt's blue credentials are hard to dispute. Unlike leadership rival and erstwhile Liberal Democrat supporter Liz Truss, she is a lifelong Tory and was head of youth for the Conservative Party at Reading university from where she graduated with a philosophy degree in 1995. While at the same university as a mature student, Ms Mordaunt met Paul Murray, who she married in 1999 but divorced just a year later.
Little is known about Mr Murray or the reasons for the divorce, but Ms Mordaunt has now been in a relationship with classical singer Ian Lyon for many years ― although the pair are yet to tie the knot.
Rise of Portsmouth MP Mordaunt
Prior to entering parliament, Ms Mourdaunt plied her trade in communications in the UK and the US, even playing a prominent role in the presidential campaign of George W Bush as head of foreign press.
She first stood for election in 2005 in Portsmouth. She was unsuccessful but gained redemption five years later in 2010, winning the seat for David Cameron's Tories.
Before becoming international trade minister she held a variety of ministerial positions and two Cabinet roles. Theresa May appointed her secretary of state for international development in 2017 and then in 2019, after the sacking of Gavin Williamson, elevated her to defence secretary.
It was a position she held for only 85 days with Mr Johnson unceremoniously demoting after he became leader of the party later that year ― interpreted by the commentariat at the time as revenge for her backing for rival Jeremy Hunt.
Penny Mordaunt's unifying appeal
All Tory leadership contenders have been clamouring to own the epithet: "the candidate most feared by Labour".
Arguably Ms Mordaunt is in pole position on that front. According to Oddschecker, she currently stands a 37 per cent chance of becoming the next PM, with fellow favourite Rishi Sunak on the same mark.
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Conservative Party members will chose between Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak in the race to become Britain's next prime minister, after Penny Mordaunt was eliminated. PA -
Rishi Sunak — former chancellor who resigned from his position last week. In a slick campaign video he said the government could not afford to fool voters about the difficulties ahead with ‘comforting fairy tales’. Getty Images -
Liz Truss — the UK’s Foreign Secretary has pledged to start cutting taxes 'from day one' if she becomes prime minister, to tackle the cost-of-living crisis. She has also vowed to ‘take the vital steps necessary’ to protect the Good Friday Agreement. Getty Images -
OUT OF THE RACE: Penny Mordaunt — Brexit-backing Trade Minister has insisted the Conservative Party was elected to ‘deliver a manifesto’. She played a prominent role in the Leave campaign in the 2016 referendum. Reuters -
OUT OF THE RACE: Kemi Badenoch — former equalities minister has promised 'limited government' and 'a focus on the essentials'. She has said Boris Johnson was 'a symptom of the problems we face, not the cause of them'. Photo: UK Parliament -
OUT OF THE RACE: Tom Tugendhat —Foreign Affairs Committee chairman and ‘Remainer’ aims to reverse the national insurance rise. He says the presence of Brexit party and Leave figures on his team is reassuring for Brexiteers. Reuters -
OUT OF THE RACE: Suella Braverman — current Attorney General has promised 'rapid and large tax cuts' to ease inflation. She has said the energy crisis means 'we must suspend the all-consuming desire to achieve net zero by 2050'. Reuters -
OUT OF THE RACE: Nadhim Zahawi — newly appointed Chancellor has promised to cut taxes and push ahead with the reforms he started in his previous role as education secretary, to ‘deliver a great education for every child’. PA -
OUT OF THE RACE: Jeremy Hunt — runner-up to Boris Johnson in the 2019 leadership race, who has pledged to slash corporation tax to 15 per cent. He has also promised to back the Northern Ireland Protocol Bill. AFP -
OUT OF THE RACE: Rehman Chishti — newly appointed Foreign Office minister had spoken of the importance of lower taxes and having a small state with a big society. 'It’s about aspirational conservatism, it’s about fresh ideas and then it comes down to having a fresh team.' Getty Images -
OUT OF THE RACE: Sajid Javid — experienced former health secretary had planned to scrap the government’s national insurance increase, bring forward the proposed 1p income tax cut to next year and introduce a further ‘significant’ temporary reduction on fuel duty. PA -
OUT OF THE RACE: Grant Shapps — the Transport Secretary had said on TV: 'I am interested in the bread-and-butter issues that your viewers will be thinking about every single day of the week.' AP
Ms Mordaunt campaigned for the Vote Leave group during the 2016 Brexit referendum, and in a 2021 delivered an impassioned speech defending it.
"Brexit is not an event to be mourned by the international community. Or an act of self-harm or one that requires us to be punished. It is a massive opportunity to anyone who believes in democracy and the power of trade as a force for good in the world."
While Rishi Sunak is also a staunch Brexiteer, he is a far more divisive figure among the Conservative right, seen by Johnson acolytes as the Brutus behind the prime minister's downfall. He is also associated with fiscal incontinence, raising taxes to their highest level since the Second World War. While many in the party forgive him the hike given the extraordinary pressures of the coronavirus pandemic, many see his record as being distinctly "unconservative".
In a recent Telegraph interview, Ms Mordaunt set great stall by a far more conventionally "conservative" approach: the politics of pragmatism ― an approach which, according to PoliticsHome, means she also appeals to the Tory "self-styled" who associate her with fealty both to David Cameron and Theresa May.
"Your mother dies, you get on with it. Your father loses his job, you get on with it. You take responsibility. You work and you keep on working. You protect and fight for those you love,” she said.
Mordaunt channelling Maggie on economy
In a self-penned piece in same paper, beloved of the Tory heartlands, she sought to cast herself as the fiscal alternative to Mr Sunak.
"Whilst I will cut taxes, I will pioneer sound money, with a key fiscal rule to ensure that debt as a percentage of GDP falls over time."
She has also said she will introduce an immediate 50 per cent cut in VAT on fuel until at least April 2023, funded by increased VAT revenues as a result of inflation, and raise basic and middle earners' tax thresholds in line with inflation.
One thing that she will not be offering is a rise in wages for the ordinary worker, and like all candidates is attempting to give the best impression of de facto Tory deity and scourge of miners, Margaret Thatcher
"Our economy is faced with the twin problems of soaring inflation and falling confidence ― with a real risk of recession ahead," she wrote.
"My government will focus on getting inflation under control, working closely with the independent Bank of England. We cannot risk spiralling wages and prices that lead to lower standards of living and loss of jobs."
Mr Sunak has vowed to take a similar position, but unlike Ms Mordaunt he is one of the richest people in Britain and thus will find it far harder to tell the electorate to go without.
Ms Mordaunt is not impregnable, however, and one area of potential weakness is the culture wars. Unlike the plain-speaking Kemi Badenoch, who takes a fiercely traditionalist view on issues such as trans rights and abortion, Ms Mordaunt is a campaigner for both, once describing abortion laws in Northern Ireland "as the most appalling thing".
Penny Mordaunt and the Gulf
There is little to judge Ms Mordaunt on regarding her stance on the Gulf ― although her cultural views are certainly at odds with prevailing sentiments. But in 2017 she was involved in negotiations with the Saudis to keep open the port of Hodeidah in Yemen.
Her intervention went down well, with a Times source telling the paper it “was the most impressive [performance] they had ever seen from a British government minister”.
Conservative leadership candidates on the campaign trail - in pictures
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Candidates Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss at the Conservative Party leadership election hustings at Wembley Arena, London. This was the final hustings attended by Tory Party members who will vote for the new leader and next prime minister. EPA -
Liz Truss addresses Conservative Party members at Wembley Arena. AP -
Mr Sunak puts forward his case to be leader while speaking at Wembley Arena. Bloomberg -
Mr Sunak visits his family's old business, Bassett Pharmacy in Southampton, while on the campaign trail. Reuters -
Ms Truss speaks to staff at Condimentum Ltd at the Food Enterprise Park in Norwich. Getty Images -
A Rishi Sunak supporter at a hustings event in Norfolk. PA -
Mr Sunak greets people at a leadership hustings in Manchester. Bloomberg -
Ms Truss poses for a selfie with a supporter as she arrives for the event in Manchester. Getty -
Rishi Sunak looks through the sights of an anti-tank missile launcher, supplied to Ukraine, during a visit to the Thales Defence System plant in Belfast, Northern Ireland. AP -
Liz Truss at a Conservative Party leadership campaign event in Belfast. Getty -
Liz Truss meets supporters before a hustings in Perth, Scotland. Getty -
Rishi Sunak speaks during a campaign visit to Cluny Castle in Inverurie, Scotland. Getty -
Police hold back protesters outside Perth Concert Hall, Scotland, where Conservative leadership candidates Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak were speaking. PA -
A mural showing the two leadership contestants appears on a wall in Belfast, Northern Ireland. AP -
Rishi Sunak during a visit to St John's Wood Synagogue, north London. PA -
Liz Truss at the Conservative Party leadership election hustings in Cheltenham. EPA -
Rishi Sunak during a hustings event in Cheltenham. Reuters -
Liz Truss speaks to scientists during a campaign visit to a life sciences laboratory at Alderley Park in Manchester. PA -
Rishi Sunak during a campaign hustings in Darlington, England. Bloomberg -
Liz Truss meets party members before she speaks at the Darlington campaign hustings. Getty -
Rishi Sunak arrives for the Darlington hustings. Getty -
Liz Truss plays pool during a visit to the Onside Future Youth Zone in London. Reuters -
Rishi Sunak looks at a book with Teddy Openshaw, 4, as his father, Henry, looks on after a Conservative leadership campaign event in Ribble Valley, Lancashire, England. Getty -
Liz Truss plays table tennis with former Conservative party leader Iain Duncan Smith during a visit to the Onside Future Youth Zone in London. Reuters -
Liz Truss with supporters at a campaign event in Solihull, England. Reuters -
Rishi Sunak attends a campaign event held by his party in Bexhill, England. Reuters -
A protester is removed as Ms Truss speaks during the Conservative Party leadership hustings in Eastbourne. Bloomberg -
Mr Sunak speaks at an event in Edinburgh. PA -
Ms Truss leaves the hall in Exeter, south-west England, after her speech to a Conservative Party membership hustings. Getty -
Mr Sunak speaks at the University of Exeter in south-west England. AP -
A supporter of Ms Truss at a Conservative Party hustings in Exeter, south-west England. Getty -
Ms Truss at a hustings event at the Pavilion conference centre at Elland Road in Leeds. PA -
Mr Sunak in Salisbury watching a screening of the Uefa Women's Euro 2022 final between England and Germany at Wembley stadium. England won 2-1 in extra time. PA -
Ms Truss before the Uefa Women's Euro 2022 final at Wembley stadium in London. AFP -
Mr Sunak meets Tory members at Fontwell Park Racecourse. Reuters -
Ms Truss at an event in Dereham, Norfolk. AFP -
Mr Sunak in Ropley, near Winchester, Hampshire. PA -
Ms Truss speaks as Conservative Member of Parliament Tom Tugendhat looks on at a Conservative Party leadership campaign event at Biggin Hill Airport. Getty -
Ms Truss on the campaign trail in Woodford Green, on the outskirts of London. Reuters -
Mr Sunak at a Conservative Party hustings event in Leeds. AFP -
Ms Truss speaks at the hustings event in Leeds. AFP -
Sunak and Truss-themed souvenirs at a stand during the Leeds hustings event. Reuters -
Ms Truss, and her mother, Patricia, arrive for the hustings event. Getty -
Ms Truss poses with supporters in Morley, England. Getty -
Mr Sunak delivers a speech during a campaign event in Newmarket. AFP -
Ms Truss and Jake Berry, MP for Rossendale and Darwen, during a visit to a broadband interchange company in Leeds. PA -
Mr Sunak answers questions as he takes part in the hustings in Leeds. AFP -
Ms Truss speaks at an event at a private house with members of the Conservative Party in Woodford Green. PA -
Ms Truss and Mr Sunak pose for a picture before a BBC leadership debate at Victoria Hall in Hanley. Getty -
Ms Truss addresses Mr Sunak during the televised debate. Getty -
Mr Sunak, with daughters Krishna and Anushka, and wife Akshata Murthy, during a visit to Vaculug tyre specialists at Gonerby Hill Foot, Grantham. PA -
Ms Truss speaks to people while campaigning in Marden. Getty -
Ms Truss celebrates after being named, along with Mr Sunak, one of the final two candidates in the race to become the UK's next prime minister. PA -
Mr Sunak outside his campaign office in central London. EPA -
Ms Truss outside Downing Street in London. Reuters -
Rishi Sunak meets Conservative Party members and activists, in Teesport, Redcar. Reuters -
Conservative leadership candidates Mr Sunak, Ms Truss, Kemi Badenoch, presenter Julie Etchingham, Tom Tugendhat and Penny Mordaunt during 'Britain's Next Prime Minister: The ITV Debate' in London. EPA -
Ms Badenoch arrives at Here East studios in Stratford, east London, before a live television debate. PA -
Mr Sunak arrives at a London event to launch his campaign to be the next Conservative Party leader and UK prime minister. Reuters -
Mr Tugendhat appears on the BBC One current affairs programme, 'Sunday Morning'. PA -
Ms Badenoch, Ms Mordaunt, Mr Sunak, Ms Truss and Mr Tugendhat before the live television debate. PA -
Ms Mordaunt arrives for the launch of her Conservative leadership campaign at the Cinnamon Club in Westminster. PA -
Ms Truss speaks at the launch event for her campaign to become the next leader of the Tory Party and Britain's prime minister, in London. EPA -
Chancellor of the Exchequer Nadhim Zahawi, one of the candidates who has been knocked out of the race, giving a speech at the Churchill War Rooms. PA -
Former leadership candidate Jeremy Hunt appearing on the BBC One current affairs programme, 'Sunday Morning'. PA -
Sajid Javid attending the launch of his campaign to be Conservative Party leader and prime minister, at the Cinnamon Club in London. He has since been knocked out of the contest. PA -
Rehman Chishti is interviewed after announcing his bid to become the next prime minister. Mr Chishti is no longer in the race. Getty -
Mr Tugendhat speaking at the launch of his campaign. PA -
Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries and Conservative MP Iain Duncan Smith arrive for the Truss campaign launch event. Getty -
Former leadership candidate Attorney General Suella Braverman at the Churchill War Rooms in central London. PA -
Supporters of Mr Sunak wait for his arrival ahead of the campaign launch. Bloomberg -
Mr Tugendhat makes a speech at the launch of his campaign. PA -
Mr Javid mops his brow while launching his campaign. Getty -
Ms Truss leaves for work after her announcement that she would be running for the leadership of the Conservative Party. Getty
