Last week, I was pleased to welcome both Conservative Party leadership contenders to the Ludlow Constituency. 

Former Chancellor Rishi Sunak and Foreign Secretary Liz Truss addressed some 400 Conservative Party members, from Ludlow and ten neighbouring constituencies at Ludlow Racecourse last Wednesday.  

Many readers will know that I supported Jeremy Hunt at the outset of the leadership contest, but the decision that party members and I now face is who would be better placed to restore confidence in the Conservatives by uniting the Party, delivering the manifesto commitments on which we won a majority in 2019 and tackling the significant challenges of our time. 

For the two weeks before this event, I conducted a constituent survey on the leadership contest. Contrary to national polls, the results have shown that among both party members and the wider electorate in the Ludlow constituency, both candidates are neck-and-neck as to who would make the best Prime Minister, but with a third of Conservative members undecided prior to the event.  

This is not therefore a foregone conclusion – Ludlow voters show there is everything still to play for: undecided Conservatives could well determine the outcome.

Crucially Rishi Sunak has a decisive lead among swing voters who may not have supported the Conservatives in 2019. The by-election losses of rural seats in North Shropshire and Tiverton & Honiton over the last 8 months is a stark reminder that the Conservative Party must rebuild support across the electorate, not just among core Conservative voters.  

Among all respondents to my survey, Sunak leads Truss by 4%. Of those who voted Liberal Democrat in 2019, Sunak is preferred as the next Prime Minister by 8:1. 

This is a difficult decision, as is clear from my survey, as we have two strong and experienced Conservative candidates to choose between. After considerable thought I am persuaded, that Rishi Sunak is best placed to provide the strong leadership we need to cope with the significant challenges we face. He is also more likely to appeal to swing voters beyond our core vote and is thus the best candidate to win the next election. 

Whoever is chosen as leader on 5th September, I have every confidence that our country will be in safe hands. I have now voted for Rishi in the membership ballot and urge local Conservative members to do so as well.