THERESA May has officially resigned as party leader, firing the starting gun on the contest to replace her.
Boris Johnson is off to a flying start, having managed to escape prosecution over claims the UK sends £350 million a week to the EU.
Rival Esther McVey has sought to woo Tory voters with attacks on LGBT education and the claim that the UK is “one of the most generous countries in our support for disabled people” (the UK in fact ranks 27th out of 36 OECD countries when it comes to spending on disability-related cash payments).
READ MORE: Boris Johnson avoids prosecution over £350m Brexit campaign claim
Michael Gove, meanwhile, has been doing lots of jogging.
The point is, you really have to go some to stand out in this Tory leadership race.
Step forward Rory Stewart – who, according to new YouGov polling, is the public’s top choice for prime minister among Conservative candidates.
Stewart has stolen the limelight away from his rivals with a stunning strategy to save the Union. It even tops Matt Hancock’s ingenious ploy to cover Edinburgh in Union Jacks.
READ MORE: Matt Hancock makes ‘nonsense’ claim about Union Jack at Edinburgh Festival
One of Conservatives' favourite pastimes is to hark back to what they conceive as a glorious past, and Stewart is bang on brand here.
To the delight of social media users, he announced he will immediately introduce mandatory national service for every 16-year-old in the UK if he becomes prime minister.
If I become Prime Minister I will introduce National Citizen Service - universal - for every young person. Purpose. Character. Coming together across the United Kingdom. pic.twitter.com/rSxxSxnCgr
— Rory Stewart (@RoryStewartUK) June 7, 2019
Aside from the obvious attraction of conscripting youngsters, the Tory MP said the scheme would be “a fantastic way of bringing people from Scotland and England together”.
The idea was presumably conceived while Stewart smoked opium – “a very stupid mistake” – in Iran, where military service is mandatory for most men after turning 18.
In a video which has certainly caught the attention of Twitter users, the Conservative said: “I am committing that on the day that I take over as prime minister I will launch national citizen service.”
He quickly clarified: “Not a military service.”
Phew.
Stewart continued: “But a national service for every young person at 16, where they will go, spend two weeks with people from different backgrounds, often in an outdoor, education setting – to learn skill, develop confidence and then two weeks giving back to a community project.
“I felt it myself as a young man, joining the army in a military setting, how much confidence it gave me and how much it set me up for life.” Wait a minute … “But in modern Britain it doesn’t need to be in a military setting,” That’s that settled. It’s nothing like military service – ok?!
The Jouker is in awe of Stewart’s efforts to outdo his Tory rivals, but not everyone was so complimentary …
The answer to Tories making a right mess of the UK is to make citizens build unity cairns until they have forgotten the UK's problems are caused by Tories making a right mess of the UK. https://t.co/tNFR0MiSPQ
— Ross Colquhoun (@rosscolquhoun) June 7, 2019
Young people across the UK of all backgrounds need to condemn and oppose this. Young people don't need to be told what to do. Least of all to fit the expectations of a previous generation. .@YSINational should begin the fight back. https://t.co/qUrvAkpq9k
— Rory Steel 🔴✊ (@RorySteel94) June 7, 2019
Tory logic: bringing back conscription and giving every young person the right to die in pointless war, but not the right to vote at 16, nor the right to a living wage. https://t.co/Zd1dqsn7LJ
— WG Saraband 🏴🇵🇹 (@wgsaraband) June 7, 2019
Why not go further? Why not Compulsory D-Days for under-18s? https://t.co/R8bDhS4Lya
— Elvis Buñuelo (@Mr_Considerate) June 7, 2019
You want to help teenagers develop confidence Rory?
— 🌹 megan 🌹 (@s_ckb_y) June 7, 2019
Please, instead of spending money on sending us all Coasteering fir a day, spend money on getting all of those teenagers suffering from depression/anxiety/eds and suicidal thoughts some good, consistent mental health care. https://t.co/hcI6tVZT3J
You get a lot of these skills from going to university...you also get a lot of anxiety and stress from the cost of university...perhaps sort that problem out first... https://t.co/XiVqKFw2UA
— Marcus Rose (@MarcmanJ) June 7, 2019
1. The scheme already exists (NCS)
— Rachael Dunlop (@RachaelDunlop) June 7, 2019
2. Most of the young people I know have plenty of character and purpose.
3. It’s the grown ups that need to get out of their bubbles and connect with people from different communities. https://t.co/julbAZmk5v
So happy that our favourite lovely gentle tory with the gigantic hands is full of progressive common-sense ideas like compulsory unpaid labour for millions of children https://t.co/qv9uqnUrlb
— Harry Jay Robinson (@HarryJayRob) June 7, 2019
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