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Rishi Sunak has made more appointments to his interim opposition team, with four in ten Tory MPs now holding frontbench roles.<\/b><\/p>\n
The former prime minister has made a string of junior appointments after confirming his shadow cabinet last week.<\/p>\n
In a sign of the party’s reduced ranks after its election thrashing, several now have more than one role, with Hamble Valley MP Paul Holmes holding three.<\/p>\n
The postings are likely to be temporary, with Mr Sunak set to stand down after leading the party to its worst-ever result in modern history.<\/p>\n
Party bosses are set to announce a timetable for a leadership contest next week.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
The latest raft of appointments means 51 of the 121 Conservative MPs elected now have roles on the party’s front bench.<\/p>\n
Among these is Rutland and Stamford MP Alicia Kearns, appointed shadow Foreign Office minister, who responded for the party earlier in a debate on Gaza.<\/p>\n
Mr Holmes, who was elected at the previous general election in 2019, has also been made a shadow minister at the department, alongside frontbench roles at the Northern Ireland Office and as a party whip.<\/p>\n
In other appointments, Danny Kruger, co-chair of the New Conservatives group on the right of the party, becomes a shadow defence minister.<\/p>\n
The party said the announcements meant it was ready to provide “the opposition the public deserves”, with further appointments to follow.<\/p>\n
So far no Tory MP has declared they will run in the contest to replace Mr Sunak, amid a debate within the party over when and how it should take place.<\/p>\n
Possible leadership contenders include Kemi Badenoch, Tom Tugendhat, Victoria Atkins and Suella Braverman, whom Mr Sunak sacked as home secretary<\/a> last year.<\/p>\n Former home secretary Priti Patel has also been tipped to run, as has Robert Jenrick<\/a>, who quit as Mr Sunak’s immigration minister last year after a row over legislation to deliver the now-ditched Rwanda deportation scheme.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n