NE Cambs MP Steve Barclay snubbed neighbouring MP Liz Truss to declare his support for Rishi Sunak to become prime minister.

"I worked closely with him when I was chief secretary to the Treasury, and I am convinced that he has all the right attributes to lead the country," Mr Barclay said in a tweet just after 6am today.

The new health minister said that “after careful consideration I have decided that, out of a very strong field of candidates, I will be supporting Rishi Sunak”.

Conservative MPs will have the chance to vote for the eight contenders hoping to replace Boris Johnson as prime minister in the latest round of polling today.

The final eight are: Rishi Sunak, Liz Truss, Tom Tugendhat, Kemi Badenoch, Penny Mordaunt, Jeremy Hunt, Nadhim Zahawi and Suella Braverman.

Each will now need 30 backers to win through to the next round of voting.