Inside what the public really thinks of the Tory leadership candidates, including Kemi Badenoch, Tom Tugendhat

New research has revealed what the public think of the Conservative leadership candidates.

Focus groups conducted by think-tank More in Common have looked at the strengths and weaknesses of each of the main candidates, which include Kemi Badenoch, James Cleverly and Tom Tugendhat.

The ten focus groups were convened across English constituencies in July and August, with participants coming from a mix of demographic backgrounds.

Tory leadership hopefuls have in recent days traded blows over immigration, with Robert Jenrick’s key pledge to leave the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) dismissed as an attempt to provide “easy answers” by his rival Ms Badenoch.

Mr Cleverly, the shadow home secretary, has suggested that promising to leave the ECHR was offering “soundbites and quick fixes” rather than working to resolve a complex issue.

Mr Jenrick believes the UK must leave the ECHR, and the Strasbourg court which rules on it, to make it easier to remove people who arrive in small boats across the English Channel.

He also wants an end to mass legal migration, with a binding cap to bring it down to the tens of thousands “or less”.

But Mrs Badenoch, the bookmakers’ favourite to replace Rishi Sunak as Tory leader, said: “People who are throwing out numbers, saying we’ll leave the ECHR and so on, are giving you easy answers. That’s how we got in this mess in the first place.”

Mr Jenrick, who quit Mr Sunak’s government after pushing for tougher measures over the Rwanda asylum scheme, is seen as Mrs Badenoch’s closest rival for the job.

But on the overall strengths and weaknesses of the main Tory candidates, here are the results found by More in Common.