Ordinary voters in Exeter city centre hours were unimpressed with the two Tory leadership candidates today - hours before they went head-to-head.
Speaking to the Mirror hours before a hustings event in the city got underway, they attacked the choice between Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss.
Rachel Hartland, 72, who runs an art gallery, said: “It’s an absolute bottom of the barrel choice of people.
“I really feel that both of them have already served in the Cabinet and they have been found wanting.
“They shouldn’t be there, we should have more options.
“I also feel very upset that I can’t vote - I always vote Conservative but I’m not a member and this makes me feel like we have no choice and, of course, we don’t.
“I’d like to see (Defence Secretary) Ben Wallace there.
“Rishi Sunak is insubstantial in his entire presence, he’s too flimsy.
“Liz Truss is trying to be like Margaret Thatcher but if she comes into power we will go to war with Russia.”
Ben Laes, 40, a teacher, said: “The contest has got out of hand, it isn’t about the politics anymore it’s about who argues the best.
“I would like Sunak to win - his policies make a bit more sense than Truss’s, who has gone for the populist approach, not necessarily backed up with the evidence.
“I still think they will win the next election though, whoever wins. I don’t think Keir Starmer has got enough to sway enough voters.”
Terry Hibberd, 56, who works in John Lewis, said: “I’m not keen on either of them, I don’t think they have got the people’s interests at heart, they are careerists - all politicians are careerists.
“Out of the two of them, it’s a really hard choice. I would probably go for the lady but only because I don’t know so much about her.
“I wasn’t a Boris fan but he was good for entertainment value, but it’s a serious position to be in so you can’t have a joker.”
Ibrahim Robertson, 41, who works for a local authority, said: “I don’t think it’s unusual for people to be jabby in a contest like this.
“It was always to be expected off the back of what has gone before with Boris.
“I suspect Sunak will be victorious, I think he will get more support as a lot of people may change their minds.”
Rebecca Nisbet, 19, a gap year student due to study biology at Newcastle University, said: “It’s a bit of a shambles.
“I don’t reside with one political party but if I was to choose it wouldn’t be the Conservatives.
“I don’t want either of them to win but Rishi has got better qualities than some of the other original contestants, but I’m not 100% sold on him and I’m less keen on Truss - she’s very opinionated and very keen to get that across and sometimes she doesn’t do it in the right way.”
Elaine Gilbert, 77, who worked for the Science Research Council before retiring, said: “It’s an abysmal choice between two people that just don’t seem right.
“It makes Boris look good - and Boris was never good.
“Rishi Sunak is sneaky, he plotted against Boris.
“He’s out of touch with real people because he’s so wealthy and he has seemed really quite arrogant.
“I don’t like Liz Truss because she’s very ‘quick fix’ - say this, say that because that will get her where she wants to be.
“People say she’s experienced but when I think of statesmen-like people in the past, there were so many good people - Tories, Labour, the Lib Dems - and now we’ve got this lot.”
