7 Mail writers' verdicts on the Tory leadership beauty contest

It was the showpiece event of the Tory leadership campaign - the four remaining contenders making their pitch to the party faithful from the conference stage. And watching Kemi Badenoch, James Cleverly, Robert Jenrick and Tom Tugendhat make their case were seven top Mail writers. Here, they give their verdicts on the speeches - with each choosing their winner.

Sarah Vine

I went into this final pitch round in favour of Kemi Badenoch – and came out still in favour of Kemi, but also very impressed by James Cleverly. Badenoch is my kind of woman: she speaks as she finds, isn’t afraid to ruffle feathers and – importantly – drives Lefties mad. Her speech was punchy, to the point and full of real passion and energy. That said, I wasn’t too keen on the Maggie Thatcher-style blue skirt suit, but then she doesn’t have Lord Alli’s clothing budget.

If I have a criticism, it’s that she came across very much as a ‘my way or the highway’ type of leader – which is fine in government, perhaps trickier when you’re trying to unite a fractured party.

On that front, Cleverly’s warm, almost avuncular vibe felt more effective, and his relentless positivity was quite uplifting. Plus, I loved his self-deprecating Luton joke. The other two? Tom Tugendhat is too one note for me, lovely as he is; and Robert Jenrick reminds me of a second-hand car salesman: too slick, a bit slippery, not entirely sincere.

My winner: Kemi Badenoch

Quentin Letts

War veteran Tom Tugendhat, 51, came across as oddly callow and nervous. Robert Jenrick, 42, waggled his bendy right forefinger, but his speech felt fringed by thunder clouds. Four years of him banging on about immigration might not be much fun.

Kemi Badenoch, 44, was a gripping figure - so small on the vast stage yet so bold in her denunciations of the Leftist establishment.

‘Stop being afraid of our beliefs,’ she cried.

Kemi, the only one known widely by her first name, could be the brains of a Right-wing revival.

But James Cleverly took the laurels in the hall. At 55, the oldest of the contenders, he was the one they clapped willingly, the one who made them laugh, made them believe.

‘Conservatism with a smile,’ he said.

It was time for the Tories to ‘be FOR stuff again’ rather than always moaning.

My winner: James Cleverly

Andrew Pierce

Against the odds James Cleverly, the former Home Secretary, won comfortably over Robert Jenrick, the pre-conference favourite.

An outsider before, Cleverly has had a good week. In his speech he sounded authoritative with policy ideas like abolishing stamp duty and a long overdue defence of the free market and a smaller state. Cleverly, a former Home Secretary and Foreign Secretary, struck a chord when he declared: ‘This is no time for an apprentice.’ He sounded like a Conservative. The bookies have already shortened his odds. 

Jenrick was most policy heavy, pledging to regain control of our borders by repealing Tony Blair’s Human Rights Act and taking us out of the European Court of Human Rights. But the most eye catching idea? Rebranding as the New Conservative Party. New Labour worked for Blair. It might just work for Jenrick.

In an assured performance, Kemi Badenoch delighted the party faithful with her attacks on identity politics. But it was curiously policy light with the emphasis instead on winning the culture wars. Not enough to erase the damage over maternity pay or calling for the jailing of civil servants, which might explain why she was the only one who refused to speak to the press afterwards...

Within two minutes Tom Tugendhat played his trump card: his time as a senior army officer. The speech was spattered with military references, but had no stand out idea or policy. He argued for a cap on immigration, but never said how he would achieve it. A strong performer this week but his speech was surprisingly flat.

My winner: James Cleverly

Stephen Glover

The beauty contest for the four remaining Tory leadership candidates didn’t turn out exactly as I had expected. One of them was much better.

Tom Tugendhat brought no surprises. He is stiff, decent and honourable. If you are planning to cross the Sahara Desert with one water bottle between two, this former army officer is your man. But prime ministerial material?

Robert Jenrick’s speech, ably delivered without notes in American campaigning style, was also what you’d expect. I didn’t disagree with anything he said on subjects ranging from securing our borders to strengthening defence. But there was something slick and shallow about his performance.

Kemi Badenoch was as billed – self-confident and strong. She wants to ‘reprogramme the British State’. A bit vague, and possibly risky. She has star quality, but spoke too much in generalities.

The stand-out speech was James Cleverly’s. His back story as a mixed-race kid brought up in Lewisham touched my heart. He was funny too – joking that as a member of the army reserve he had ‘got the call’. Hoping to be sent to Iraq, he ended up in Luton. I don’t know whether he’s clever enough to be PM but he’s a politician of substance. Easily the most powerful speech.

My winner: James Cleverly

Nadine Dorries

As I sat down to watch the speeches, I was already clear, I would be happy for either Cleverly, Jenrick or Tugendhat to be voted in by members as leader of my party.

However, words in a set speech are one thing, as Tugendhat who was first up noted. Character is vital. The candidate who lacked the integrity for me was Badenoch, a plotter who helped to remove Boris Johnson.

Her speech perfectly encapsulated why she is such a divisive figure. She treats politics as a game. The outright winner was unarguably Cleverly. His rousing speech was straight from the Boris playbook. No surprise there as he spent his entire political apprenticeship at the knee of our electoral winner, from his days in City Hall when Boris was Mayor to Westminster where he became Foreign Secretary.

He reminded us of all we had achieved, from Brexit to the vaccine rollout, and with a speech full of hope and optimism owned the future by outlining that our best days were still to come. He was humble and made a profound apology for the behaviour of Conservative MPs in the last Parliament - and let’s face it, that had to be done.

My winner: James Cleverly

Dan Hodges

Today’s conference hustings merely confirmed the choice facing the Tories over their new leader is so stark it isn’t really a choice at all. Robert Jenrick’s breathless Thatcherism showed he is basically a cipher for disillusioned former allies of Suella Braverman, and would wrench the Tories to the political margins and oblivion.

Kemi Badenoch’s giggles underlined she currently lacks the maturity and temperament to occupy the highest office in the land. Tom Tugendhat was solid, but his liberal instincts would fracture his party, and cement the split on the right.

James Cleverly’s address reaffirmed he is the one candidate with serious cabinet experience. He’s the only candidate with an ounce of charisma. And as a Boris Johnson ally who earned the grudging respect of the One Nation group of MPs, the only one who has any hope of delivering Tory unity.

Perhaps most importantly, he’s the only candidate who properly heard the message delivered to his party by the British people in July.

‘Sorry’ he said, in a clear and important act of contrition.

When parties lose power they invariably lose the next five years in an orgy of self-indulgent infighting and self-recrimination. Either the Tories elect James Cleverly, or they can prepare for the same fate.

My winner: James Cleverly

Daniel Johnson

Kemi Badenoch began this conference brimming with self-confidence: ‘Nice speeches, boys, but I think you all know I’m the one everyone’s been waiting for.’

It was worth the wait. Alone of the four candidates, Kemi has the chemistry, the character and the charisma to defeat the Starmer army.

Not that the others spoke badly. James Cleverly regaled us with his youth as ‘a mixed-race kid in Lewisham’ and joked about his Warhammer toy soldiers. Tom Tugendhat reminded us (again) about his army background. Both came across as decent, competent chaps — just a bit dull.

By contrast, Robert Jenrick’s speech completely misfired. Claiming that Mrs Thatcher became leader in 1974 — it was 1975 — wasn’t Jenrick’s only false note: the last thing the Tories need is to be a ‘trade union for working people’, whatever that means, let alone a Blairite rebranding as ‘the New Conservative Party’.

Only Kemi is unafraid of opposition. ‘We are going to have fun,’ she beamed and embraced her combative reputation: ‘I do not fight for the sake of fighting, but... I will always fight against Left-wing nonsense.’ If Tories are looking for a leader who will take the fight to Labour, their choice is clear.

My winner: Kemi Badenoch