Wirral Conservative leader still to make up his mind who should be our new Prime Minister

Wirral Council's Conservative leader said he still hasn't made up his mind about who to vote for in the party's national leadership contest – with just five days to go.

Councillor Tom Anderson praised both candidates and defended former Chancellor Rishi Sunak, who is facing off against Foreign Secretary Liz Truss in the battle to be the next Tory leader and Prime Minister.

When asked if he is voting for Rishi Sunak or Liz Truss, Cllr Anderson said: "Not quite. Both candidates have committed to levelling up but I'm still waiting to make up my mind. Now I will vote but that vote will be private."

The Conservative Party leadership contest is expected to end on September 5 with 160,000 party members voting for the next Prime Minister.

Cllr Anderson did not say what he was waiting to see from the two candidates with just days left in the contest. He also defended controversial comments made by Rishi Sunak in Tunbridge Wells about diverting money away from deprived urban areas.

The former Chancellor was recorded explaining how he had changed the funding formulas that previously 'shoved all the funding into deprived urban areas and needed to be undone." 

The comments were believed to refer to areas of the Wirral as well as Middlesborough and parts of London.

Cllr Anderson said: "As Chancellor he delivered £200 million in levelling up funding for the Wirral. I hope that we will continue to see that investment. If we look at the facts, Wirral has done exceptionally well."

"I think that's because of our potential. I welcome the huge amount of money that the last government has given to the Wirral because the North I feel has been left behind the South for some time."

Cllr Anderson also said the investment should be broad in scope, adding: "We need to make sure that that funding is not just about building new houses. We need to think about attracting skills and jobs in the area. We are seeing some of that coming to fruition and we want to get it right. Investment in jobs and skills. It's about the next generation.

The Leader of Wirral Council, Labour's Jannette Williamson, previously criticised the former Chancellor's comments and said she was concerned about the future of levelling up funding.