HOME Secretary Priti Patel has ruled herself out of the Tory leadership contest. 

Her decision not to stand comes after close allies had talked up her chances. Thirteen Tory MPs - including education minister Andrea Jenkyns and the justice minister Tom Pursglove - had already publicly backed her for the job. 

In a statement, the home secretary said that while she was “grateful for the encouragement and support” of colleagues, “I will not be putting my name forward for the ballot of MPs”.

Ms Patel declined to back any other candidates, including Suella Braverman, the Brexit-backing Attorney General. 

She said: “As a lifelong and committed Conservative, I will always make the case for freedom, enterprise and opportunity and work with colleagues to deliver these values in government,” she said.

“Like all Conservative MPs and party members, I will be listening to cases being put forward by the candidates standing for the leadership of the party and trust the contest will be conducted in a good spirit that brings our party together.”

Ms Patel was one of six members of David Cameron’s cabinet who backed the Vote Leave camp during the 2016 Brexit referendum, alongside Boris Johnson and Michael Gove.

Elsewhere on the campaign trail, Tom Tugendhat formally launched his bid with a promise to offer “leadership with a renewed sense of mission” and a “clean start”.

He told prospective backers he would cut fuel tax by 10p a litre. 

“I am here to make the case that our economy can only prosper if we believe that people - and not Westminster - know best how to spend their money.

“I know the pain families are feeling now. That is why my first pledge is to take fuel duty down by 10p a litre.

“My second is to reverse the national insurance rise. This isn’t about percentages. It’s about jobs. That’s why I didn’t vote for the increase then, and I wouldn’t now.”

The senior backbencher said his lack of experience running a government department would not hinder his ability to lead the country. 

He said: “The reality is that the job of Prime Minister is unlike every other job in government. It’s not a management job, it’s not a departmental job. It’s a job that demands vision and leadership, it demands a willingness to serve and to throw everything in the duty of serving the British people.

“This is no time to learn. What this is, is a time to look at a record of service and a record of delivery in some of the most difficult and trying conditions around the world, and to see that this isn’t learning on the job, this is putting all that experience to work on the job.”

Meanwhile, Kemi Badenoch launched her campaign with a vow to reduce the size of the state. 

The Equalities Minister said taxpayers’ cash could be saved by stopping police from wasting “time and resources worrying about hurt feelings online.”

She told supporters: “The truth that limited government - doing less but better - is the best way to restore faith in government has been forgotten, as we pandered to pressure groups and caved in to every campaigner with a moving message

“That has made the government agenda into a shopping list of disconnected, unworkable and unsustainable policies.”

She added: “We are now taxing and spending more on government than we have ever done and yet people’s satisfaction with the quality of their day-to-day services is falling. This is not sustainable.

“We can’t carry on subsidising so many young people onto university courses which leave them with debts and diminished job prospects.

“We must require schools to concentrate on effective whole-class teaching of rigorous subjects rather than allocating tight resources to superfluous support staff and peripheral activities.

“We should get the police to focus on neighbourhood crime not waste time and resources worrying about hurt feelings online.”

The deadline for nominations is 6pm tonight, with all candidates requiring the support of at least 20 of their colleagues.