Foreign Secretary Liz Truss has opened up a commanding 24-point poll lead over former chancellor Rishi Sunak in the race to be Britain’s next prime minister .
A YouGov survey of 730 Conservative Party members on Thursday found 62 per cent would vote for Ms Truss and 38 per cent for Mr Sunak , excluding those with no preference.
It is the second poll in a week to show Ms Truss ahead of Mr Sunak, although polling has been volatile during the contest so far and could easily change over the remaining seven weeks of the contest.
While the former chancellor topped all five rounds of voting among Tory MPs, it is the party’s wider grassroots membership of about 200,000 people who will decide the winner.
The survey shows the uphill battle faced by Mr Sunak to replace Boris Johnson and secure the top job in UK politics.
He hit back on Thursday evening by saying he was best placed to defeat Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer and win a fifth term for the Tories at the next general election, expected in 2024.
Asked by LBC radio whether he was saying the party would lose under Ms Truss, he said: "That’s what all the evidence that we have today would show, and that’s what our members will need to consider."
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The two candidates sparred over their tax plans on Thursday, with Ms Truss promising immediate relief but Mr Sunak trying to show prudence by making more restrained pledges.
Ms Truss said she would undo a rise in national insurance and suspend a green levy to reduce household bills, arguing that tax cuts would stimulate growth and eventually increase revenue.
She promised tax breaks for people who take time out to care for children or elderly relatives, with her team praising carers for easing pressure on the public purse.
Mr Sunak countered that a "huge borrowing spree", with Ms Truss's tax cuts estimated to cost between £30 to £40 billion ($36-48bn), would only make inflation worse.
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
"I’m worried about the inflation that we’ve got at the moment becoming embedded and lasting far longer," he said.
A Sunak ally, backbench MP, said the former chancellor was "being responsible about the economy, not making promises that he can’t keep," in an apparent swipe at Ms Truss.
"You can’t just have unfunded tax cuts because you have to deal with the debt," he told Sky News. "If you just have unfunded tax cuts, where is that money going to be for vital public services?”.
The exact size of the Conservative membership is unknown, but at the last leadership election in 2019 there were about 160,000 members, and insiders expect it to have grown.
The two politicians will now take part in a six-week tour of campaign events across the UK, before the final result is announced on September 5 .
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Updated: July 21, 2022, 9:26 PM