Austrian official doubts Britain will leave EU

Energy Minister Andrea Leadsom set out her campaign to lead the United Kingdom as she vowed to push ahead with the process of pulling the country out of the European Union.

Andrea Leadsom has stumbled at a hustings with fellow Tory MPs as she made her pitch to be the next prime minister.

All 330 party MPs will vote, with the weakest candidates eliminated before another set of votes set to take place on Thursday and the following Tuesday. May is now followed by Leadsom on 40, Gove on 26, Crabb on 23 and Fox on nine.

However, May supported Britain staying in the European Union and many Conservatives have argued the next prime minister who will need to negotiate Britain’s exit from the bloc after 43 years membership needed to be someone who had supported leaving.

Gloucester Research Limited, owned by Leadsom’s brother-in-law and run by her husband, had used an employee benefit trust (EBT) for four years, The Times first reported.

“Only nine months ago I was very honoured to be elected leader of our party with 60 per dent of the votes”.

“I have also sought to stress the need for experience as the successful candidate will have to take up the reins of government in less than nine weeks”.

He added: “She has learnt how to get ahead as a woman in a man’s world and although that is changing, it is thanks to women such as Andrea forging real success stories for women that there is more opportunity for women in the workplace”.

The process is repeated until there are just two candidates remaining, when 150,000 party members across the country will make their choice by postal ballot.

There have been reports Mr Gove could potentially pull out of the race, but MP Nick Boles, chairman of his campaign, said the Brexit campaigner “is in it to win it: he will stay in the leadership contest until he has won, or lost under the rules”.

Ex-minister Liam Fox was next up.

The contest has been sparked by Mr Cameron’s decision to step down as prime minster after the United Kingdom voted by 52% to 48% to leave the European Union, in the June referendum.

And she has faced criticism over her refusal to give firm assurances that European Union nationals would be allowed to remain in the United Kingdom and was accused by former Cabinet colleague Ken Clarke of being a “bloody hard woman” with little knowledge of foreign policy.

Mrs Leadsom is now likely to emerge as the main challenger to Theresa May, the Home Secretary.

Stephen Crabb, lesser known and lesser experienced, “had his patter worked out”, and performed well I’m told, although he struggled to answer a question about how he would confront the Russian leader, Vladimir Putin.

Declarations of support verified by the Press Association show Mrs May has the backing of 126 MPs, comfortably ahead of nearest rival Mrs Leadsom, who has 39.

Boris Johnson has given his backing to Andrea Leadsom in the Conservative Party leadership campaign, in a move which could end Michael Gove’s hopes of becoming Prime Minister.

“This does not mean rejecting the result of the referendum”.

South Northamptonshire MP and Leave campaigner Mrs Leadsom is battling for votes against justice secretary Michael Gove, home secretary Theresa May, work and pensions secretary Stephen Crabb and former defence secretary Liam Fox.

The results will knock out the candidate with the least support, but others will then have until 9am on Wednesday to withdraw from the race if they believe that the first-round results are not strong enough to carry on.