Tories elect new 1922 chairman

Sir Michael has beaten off all challenges

Senior Conservative MP Sir Michael Spicer has been elected by his colleagues to represent them as the new chairman of the 1922 committee.

And he wasted no time in firing the official starting gun for the Tory leadership race, announcing the deadline for nominations will be next Thursday, 5 July.

How the contest went

Sir Michael Spicer, 79 votes

Gillian Shephard, 66 votes

John Butterfill, 11 votes

Organising the party's complex process of choosing a new leader to replace William Hague is one of his most important roles.

Sir Michael, who also acts as the contest referee, had already signalled his intention to complete the elections as soon as possible.

If all goes according to plan, the next Conservative leader could be known by mid-September.

Chairman election

Sir Michael won 79 votes in the ballot to become the 1922 chairman, beating his nearest rival Gillian Shephard by 13 votes.

John Butterfill came last with 11.

A former environment minister and right-wing eurosceptic, Sir Michael was widely tipped as the favourite for the job.

In his acceptance speech he said his objectives were to ensure the unity of the Tories and to raise the status of the parliamentary party.

"I believe in particular that the parliamentary party should have a well-defined role in the development of policy for the next general election, as we used to have when I first came into parliament."

Sounding board

The 1922 committee acts as a sounding board, communicating the views of backbenchers to the leadership.

Tory MPs leave the Carlton Club after the decisive meeting

Its chairmanship was left vacant following the retirement of Sir Archibald Hamilton at the general election.

If Mrs Shephard had won she would have become the first woman to hold the post, although in the event Tory MPs opted to elect the Worcestershire West MP.

Long tradition

It is often said that the 1922 committee takes its name from the Carlton Club meeting which brought down the Lloyd George coalition in 1922.

But in fact it was formed in 1923 and named after the year in which its first members were elected as MPs.

Tory MP Alan Duncan has called for the name to be changed to make it more modern but when this has been discussed before, MPs have failed to agree on an alternative.

Conservative MPs will now elect a vice chairman and treasurer of the committee.