Matt Hancock has dropped out of the Tory leadership race amid rumours the remaining contenders will unite to stop Boris Johnson becoming prime minister.
The health secretary announced his decision to withdraw hours after issuing a joint statement with Jeremy Hunt, Michael Gove, Dominic Raab, Sajid Javid, and Rory Stewart to compel the frontrunner in taking part in a televised debate before the next vote.
Mr Johnson bowed to pressure to take part in the BBC debate on Tuesday but he signalled he would refuse to take part in the first clash, hosted by Channel 4 on Sunday.
See below for what was our live coverage.
Good morning and welcome to The Independent's live coverage of the Tory leadership contest.
Seven candidates remain following the first vote on Thursday. Boris Johnson received 114 votes, well ahead of his nearest rival Jeremy Hunt on 43. Michael Gove was third with 37.
Andrea Leadsom, Mark Harper and Esther McVey were eliminated after failing to win 17 or more votes from MPs.
The next vote is scheduled to take place on 18 June, with further ballots on 19 and 20 June to reduce the field until only two remain. Mr Johnson is most likely to be one of those two, but the other is far from certain. The six other contenders are now vying to claim the mantle of the “stop Boris” candidate, writes political editor Andrew Woodcock.
Battle for second place after Boris Johnson takes lead
Rival contenders vying to be seen as the ‘stop Boris’ candidateBoris Johnson has faced criticism for ducking interviews with the media during his highly stage-managed campaign. So far the frontrunner has taken just six questions from journalists.
His opponents have now ganged up by committing to appear on TV leadership debates on Sunday and Tuesday, with Channel 4 saying he will be represented by an empty chair if he refuses to take part.
Jeremy Hunt, Michael Gove, Dominic Raab, Sajid Javid, Matt Hancock and Rory Stewart said in a joint statement:
The next Conservative Leader, and Prime Minister, will have the crucial task of uniting Britain behind a new vision - not only to deliver Brexit, but to define what comes next.
This leadership contest provides an important opportunity to debate, to shape and to define the ideas which will underpin those competing visions.
That is why we are committed to taking part in the Channel 4 televised debates this Sunday and the BBC programme next Tuesday.
Mr Johnson's spokesman has said his client is "in discussions" with broadcasters.
The frontrunner is also facing further criticism over his past remarks about Islamic dress.
Mohammed Amin, the chairman of the Conservative Muslim Forum, compared Boris Johnson to Adolf Hitler and said he will end his 36-year membership of the party if he becomes prime minister.
Mr Amin said that Mr Johnson, who won the first round of the Tory leadership race with nearly three times the votes of his closest rival, was not "sufficiently moral" to lead the country.
Boris Johnson compared to Hitler in extraordinary attack by Tory Muslim forum chairman
Mohammed Amin says Johnson is 'not sufficiently moral' to be prime ministerLast September Mr Johnson told Sky News that he backs televised debates for general elections.
"My feeling is that they are essential and the public does need to see interchange between their potential leader," he says.
Sky News on Twitter
"My feeling is that they are essential and the public does need to see interchange between their potential leaders" - Former foreign secretary Boris Johnson has backed Sky News' #MakeDebatesHappen campaign. For more, head here: https://t.co/VcsYZb7wu3 https://t.co/FcHbxo7LzcYesterday Rory Stewart vowed to “bring down” Boris Johnson as prime minister if he tries to suspend parliament to force through a no-deal Brexit.
Mr Johnson has not ruled out suspending parliament in order to fulfil his pledge to take the UK out of the EU by 31 October, deal or no deal. But he is understood to have told MPs at a hustings earlier this week that he was not in favour of the controversial move.
Rory Stewart vows to 'bring down' Tory leadership rival Boris Johnson over no-deal Brexit threat
The international development secretary said MPs would set up parliament outside the Palace of Westminster if the frontrunner for PM tried to lock them outHowever Mr Stewart, the international development secretary, has also said he could serve in a cabinet led by Boris Johnson.
He told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "If we ended up in a crisis, and I fear no-deal Brexit would be a crisis, and if he were to wish me to come back, which I think is a little doubtful given the slight acrimony of the last few weeks, then, of course, I'd be honoured to serve."
Jeremy Hunt has also appeared on the Today programme to accuse Boris Johnson of hiding from the media.
He said: "We can only have that debate if our front-runner in this campaign is a little bit braver in terms of getting out into the media and actually engaging in debates. Engaging in the TV debates."
Mr Hunt said he would take part in leadership TV debates, adding: "What would Churchill say if someone who wants to be prime minister of the United Kingdom is hiding away from the media, not taking part in these big occasions?"
Priti Patel, a supporter of Boris Johnson, told Today that his jokes Muslim women wearing the veil was "not to mock" them but "was a clear defence of women's rights to wear whatever they like".
That's a stark contrast to the approach taken by Mohammed Amin, chairman on the Muslim Conservative Forum, who said Mr Johnson failes the test of being "sufficiently moral to be prime minister."
There are many horrible people who have been popular. Popularity is not the test.
A lot of Germans thought that Hitler was the right man for them.
I am not saying Boris Johnson wants to send people to the gas chamber, clearly he doesn't.
He's a buffoon.
Education secretary Damian Hinds has also called on Boris Johnson to take part in the TV debates. "All candidates need to be properly scrutinised, put under some pressure," he tells Sky News. "This is not an ordinary job vacancy, its the prime minister of the country. The public want to see the full range of questions put to them."
After BBC's Victoria Derbyshire became the latest media figure to mispronounce Jeremy Hunt‘s name, the foreign secretary has urged broadcasters to "grow up".
He told the Daily Telegraph: "I'm used to it. I had this when I was at school. Personally I think people should just grow up and get over the fact that my last name rhymes with a rather unpleasant word."
Victoria Derbyshire accidentally calls Jeremy Hunt 'c***' on BBC show
The Independent'It’s normally men who say that so I really, really want to apologise'Here's the Independent's political sketch writer Tom Peck on Boris Johnson, future prime minister.
"The Tory party cannot face up to the truth of what it’s done, so it’s sending for the biggest liar of them all. Can you blame them? Theresa May was unable to escape reality, so they destroyed her. Johnson can’t do it either, but he says he can, and that will certainly do for now."
Opinion: The Tories cannot face the truth of what they’ve done, so they’re sending for their biggest liar
I’d say the Tories have turned Britain into a corrupt African dictatorship, but a corrupt African dictator might sueHealth secretary Matt Hancock is reportedly considering pulling out of the Tory leadership race to support either Michael Gove or Jeremy Hunt.
The remaining seven contenders need 33 votes needed to get past the next round on Tuesday. Only three reached that number on Thursday's vote - Boris Johnson, Michael Gove and Jeremy Hunt.
One of Mr Johnson's supporters described the other four - Dominic Raab, Sajid Javid, Rory Stewart and Matt Hancock as "vanity candidates".
They told the Telegraph: "Anyone else who tries to carry on is being indulgent."
If there were only three candidates left by next Tuesday's vote, one would be eliminated and the contest could proceed to the next stage of voting by the party membership the same day, instead of next Thursday as currently scheduled.
Jeremy Hunt has taunted Boris Johnson about "hiding away" from the media during the Tory leadership race. "What would Churchill say?", he asks.
Mr Johnson is also the author of a book called "The Churchill Factor", described on Amazon as "essential reading for anyone who wants to know what makes a great leader."
Here's political correspondent Lizzy Buchan with the full story.
'What would Churchill say?' Hunt taunts Boris Johnson for 'hiding' from media and TV debates
Rivals also issue joint statement urging Johnson to take part in TV debatesThe foreign secretary refused to say if he believed Mr Johnson would be a good prime minister.
Mr Hunt told the Today programme: "I hope he would be if he becomes prime minister. I don't know the answer to that question in advance. But, if he gets the job, I will do everything in my power to make him a successful prime minister."
In other news, there are now only 139 days until Brexit. Or until Brexit is delayed again.
Today is also the second anniversary of the Grenfell Tower fire.
A day of remembrance will begin with a memorial service at nearby St Helen's Church at 11am.
At midday the community will observe a 72-second silence to mark the 72 victims.
This evening survivors, relatives, neighbours and friends of those who died on 14 June 2017 will lay wreaths at the foot of the 24-storey tower before walking silently through North Kensington.
Grenfell community to 'stand together' and remember victims two years on from fire
‘We aren’t going to go away, we’re not going to fade away and we’re not going to let others forget our loved ones’Former Labour and Change UK MP Chuka Umunna will officially confirm he has joined the Liberal Democrats with a press conference at 12.15pm.
He first announced the move last night on Twitter. Here's our report by Chiara Giordano.
Former Labour and Change UK MP Chuka Umunna joins the Lib Dems
‘I am convinced the Liberal Democrats, as the spearhead of a broader progressive movement in civil society, offer the best chance to improve lives’There have been varying reactions to the prospect of a seven-way Tory leadership debate on TV.
Alastair Stewart of ITV News believes it's more important that Boris Johnson gives "one-to-one forensic interviews" to the media, while former ambassador to the US Christopher Meyer suggests the TV debates should be delayed until there are only two contenders left standing.
Here's a reminder of some of Boris Johnson's most blatant falsehoods.
