Hague's assessment
William Hague, writing in his regular column in the News of the World, has given his opinion on the front running contenders in the Tory leadership race:
David Cameron: "To win in the race for the leadership he has to stick his neck out even more and spell out in more detail how the Tories would change if he was in charge of the party."
Ken Clarke: "At 65, this is his last chance to lead. It's also his best chance, ironically, because some things he has always supported, like the euro and the EU constitution, have become such disasters that no sane Briton is any longer in favour of them. That tells you how strange politics can be: when what you believe in is discredited, people can actually find it easier to vote for you."
David Davis: "His big problem is he's the favourite and the favourite hardly ever wins. To do so he has to show he can inspire people and win their affection just as well as he can fight. He is still the most likely to win."
Liam Fox: "The one thing he has to do to win is bring out his personality and passion in his big speeches and TV interviews, showing people he is the heavyweight candidate they need."
Sir Malcolm Rifkind: "Probably the only thing he can do, at this stage, is shoot the other candidates."
David Cameron: "To win in the race for the leadership he has to stick his neck out even more and spell out in more detail how the Tories would change if he was in charge of the party."
Ken Clarke: "At 65, this is his last chance to lead. It's also his best chance, ironically, because some things he has always supported, like the euro and the EU constitution, have become such disasters that no sane Briton is any longer in favour of them. That tells you how strange politics can be: when what you believe in is discredited, people can actually find it easier to vote for you."
David Davis: "His big problem is he's the favourite and the favourite hardly ever wins. To do so he has to show he can inspire people and win their affection just as well as he can fight. He is still the most likely to win."
Liam Fox: "The one thing he has to do to win is bring out his personality and passion in his big speeches and TV interviews, showing people he is the heavyweight candidate they need."
Sir Malcolm Rifkind: "Probably the only thing he can do, at this stage, is shoot the other candidates."
