Allies of Liz Truss have denied involvement in a “black ops” campaign against Penny Mordaunt ahead of the first television debate for the remaining Tory leadership candidates this evening.
Ms Mordaunt has been attacked by a supporter of the foreign secretary, Lord David Frost, who claimed she failed to “master the detail” when she was his deputy as Brexit minister.
However, transport minister Wendy Morton, appearing on Times Radio, said Ms Truss is “absolutely not” involved in any kind of untoward campaign.
Meanwhile, Lord Frost has urged Kemi Badenoch to pull out of the Tory leadership contest and back the foreign secretary.
He called for “unity among free marketeers” and praised Ms Badenoch but said she should withdraw “in return for a serious job in a Truss administration”.
His remarks come as Ms Mordaunt has narrowed the gap with Rishi Sunak and increased her lead over Ms Truss in the second round of voting by Tory MPs in the contest to be party leader and prime minister.
The former defence secretary won 83 votes, while the frontrunner, the former chancellor, won 101 - a gap of 18, three lower than the gap yesterday after the first round.
