THE Tory leadership race has shown the “strength and depth of talent” in the Conservative Party, Douglas Ross has said.
The Scottish Tory leader’s comments came as he continued to decline to take a public position on the race to replace Boris Johnson in No 10.
In the 2019 leadership race, Ross publicly backed Johnson to win after outsider Mark Harper was eliminated in the first round.
This time around, he has kept quiet insisting that he will “work closely with whoever they [members of the Tory party] elect as leader”.
MPs had their final round of voting on Wednesday, with Penny Mordaunt being knocked out of the running with 105 votes.
Liz Truss (113 votes) and Rishi Sunak (137 votes) will face off over the summer for the position of prime minister. The ballot of Tory members will close on September 2, with the result announced three days after.
After the two finalists were announced, Ross tweeted to congratulate them.
Congratulations to both @RishiSunak and @trussliz on making it to the members' ballot👇 I look forward to welcoming you both to Scotland and to see the positive campaigns you present to our members over the coming weeks. pic.twitter.com/1qvIhf1FLq
— Douglas Ross MP MSP (@Douglas4Moray) July 20, 2022
He wrote: “Congratulations to Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss on making it to the members' ballot.
"The race to date has shown the strength and depth of talent we have across the party and I know the final two candidates will present positive campaigns to our members over the coming weeks.
"I look forward to them coming to Scotland and engaging with members and the wider public ahead of the result being declared in September.
"It's now up to individual members to decide the outcome. I will work closely with whoever they elect as leader of our party."
Ross had a reportedly strained relationship with Johnson after he called on him to quit following revelations about the partygate scandal. The affair eventually saw Johnson become the first prime minister punished for breaking the law while in office.
However, Ross U-turned on his position after Johnson refused to step down, insisting that the war in Ukraine meant it was not the time to change prime minister.
He later U-turned again and voted for Johnson to be removed as leader of the Tory party in the no-confidence motion which closely preceded his eventual resignation.
Ross told PA: “As Scottish Conservative leader, I will work with whoever emerges victorious from the vote by party members.
“The next six weeks offer a chance for both Rishi and Liz to outline their policies and vision to the membership and I look forward to seeing that happen across the country, including at the Scottish hustings.”
He added: “This contest clearly showed that it is only the Conservative Party that has the talented individuals within it to truly represent all parts of our country.”
