Sajid Javid’s leadership launch was delayed by over an hour because Parliament was trying to make up its mind on whether to stop a no-deal Brexit. When he eventually arrived, there was a rather jolly atmosphere in the room, encouraged in part by the fact that his campaign team had thought it wise to offer a free bar. He was also introduced by Scottish Tory leader Ruth Davidson, whose typically rambunctious style set the tone for Javid’s own speech.
Javid is pitching himself as the ‘change candidate’, despite having served in Theresa May’s Cabinet right up to her resignation. His reason for offering change? He might be an ‘insider’ in the sense that he is associated with the current government (though many working in Downing Street at the moment would describe his association as being somewhat loose, suspecting him of briefing against May throughout her premiership), but he is very much an outsider when it comes to his life story.
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