I thought that Liz Truss was the least worst candidate. I have changed my mind

She wasn’t wooden last night, she did relax, and she exuded confidence and presence. If the electorate can see what I saw, I believe that she can win a general election.

Over a thousand members of the Conservative Party packed into the Centenary Pavilion at Leeds United Football Club last night to listen to Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss. It was the first of twelve hustings which are due to take place across the country. I was one of those members attending the event.

I supported Kemi Badenoch’s leadership bid. To me, she was, and still is, a breath of fresh air. But it wasn’t to be. The current system of electing a new leader of the Conservative Party means that members are left with two choices decided for us by Conservative MPs. I therefore entered the hall yesterday evening knowing that the candidate I wanted the most was not on the ballot and that I had to make a decision.

When it comes to policies, my heart is with Liz Truss. She articulates what I believe in, but my problem in the past is that she doesn’t articulate it very well. At her leadership launch, she was wooden. She continued to be wooden during most of the televised debates. But last night I saw a different Liz Truss - one that was engaging and appealing.

Sunak was applauded as he came to the stage to deliver his opening speech. He was applauded as he walked off the stage after delivering it, but he failed to really engage the audience. It wasn’t that I particularly disagreed with much that he had to say. It’s not that I have a particular dislike for him personally, because I don’t. He just didn’t engage the audience - a room full of Conservative Party members who were always going to be polite.

During his introduction before Liz Truss started to speak, James Cleverly referred to her time as an activist, an Association chair, and as a councillor. It was made clear that she had worked in the voluntary party for many years before being selected as a candidate and being elected as an MP. This showed in the way she spoke to the audience. I don’t know this for certain, but I am confident that Rishi Sunak does not have a similar hinterland in the voluntary party.

Truss received applause for her support of Northern Powerhouse Rail, for saying that red tape should be slashed for farmers, for defending Ukraine, and for saying that a woman is a woman. There was no doubt that she had won round one.

After a ten-minute intermission, Nick Ferrari (who was an excellent moderator) started the questioning. Sunak, once again, went first. Ferrari grilled him for around 15 minutes, and that was followed by questions from the floor. Ferrari then did the same with Truss.

I felt (and I am sure that others will have a different opinion) that she engaged with the questioners better than Sunak. Both candidates were told that they could sit down whilst answering questions as Nick Ferrari stood up and looked around the audience looking for others wanting to pose further questions. During one question about single-sex toilets in schools, Truss stood up and said that she supported the policy and indicated that she would order schools to provide them. When Ferrari asked her whether or not pupils transitioning should have separate toilets (a possible trip hazard for her), she answered that children should not be allowed to make irreversible changes to their body. Cue a huge round of applause.

Rishi Sunak’s delivery was reasonably fast. Liz Truss’s was slower; deliberately slower. It reminded me of Margaret Thatcher. As a speaker, you have to take the audience with you and articulate every point you are trying to make in a deliberate way. The audience is then more likely to remember what you have just said. You are also more likely to receive applause. Truss did this repeatedly. Sunak did not.

As I mentioned earlier, when it comes to policies, my heart was always with Liz Truss. She is a free-market Conservative. She is not afraid to mention freedom and liberty. I was impressed with her when he summoned the Russian Ambassador for a meeting without coffee. Being sanctioned by Russia is something she regards as a badge of honour. Although she campaigned for Remain in 2016 (something which still niggles with me), she has probably done more to make Brexit work than any other Cabinet minister.

After yesterday evening’s debate, I have moved from thinking that Truss is the least worst candidate, to someone who will happily wear a ‘Liz for Leader’ badge. She looked like a Prime Minister in waiting; she spoke like a Prime Minister in waiting; and she articulated policies which I can endorse.

Rishi Sunak is not a bad man, and attacks against him calling him a Socialist are palpably ridiculous. His experience as a merchant banker, a hedge fund manager, and as Chancellor of the Exchequer could easily put him at the front of the queue for a senior position at the World Bank or the International Monetary Fund, and I am sure he would do a fine job.

But yesterday’s event was not a job interview about those positions; it was a job interview for the next leader of the Conservative Party who will immediately become the next Prime Minister of our country. For me, Liz Truss won hands down. She relates to members - the first hurdle she has to jump. To win the country, she can’t afford to appear wooden, she has to relax, and she has to exude confidence and presence. She wasn’t wooden last night, she did relax, and she exuded confidence and presence. If the electorate can see what I saw, I believe that she can win a general election.