Mel Stride has become the fourth Conservative MP to enter the race to become the party's next leader.

The former work and pensions secretary - who now holds the shadow role - hinted his candidacy to Sky News earlier this week, saying there was a "reasonable chance" he would run.

But he has now officially joined ex-home secretary James Cleverly, former security minister Tom Tugendhat, and the last immigration minister Robert Jenrick in the contest to replace Rishi Sunak.

Nominees must have 10 backers to submit their papers to enter the race.

Read more:
Tom Tugendhat joins race to replace Sunak

James Cleverly kicks off Tory leadership race
Robert Jenrick throws his hat in the ring

Follow Sky News on WhatsApp

Keep up with all the latest news from the UK and around the world by following Sky News

Tap here

Three other Tory MPs have picked up nomination papers: Priti Patel, Kemi Badenoch and Suella Braverman.

Disclaimer: The copyright of this article belongs to the original author. Reposting this article is solely for the purpose of information dissemination and does not constitute any investment advice. If there is any infringement, please contact us immediately. We will make corrections or deletions as necessary. Thank you.