Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss face yet another grilling from Tory party members as they try to win votes to become the next leader and prime minister.
The hustings, in Norwich, is on a day when both candidates have faced sharp criticism.
Ms Truss was accused of abandoning her duties as foreign secretary, having been absent from nearly all of her ministerial duties since she joined the Conservative leadership race nearly seven weeks ago, according to the Lib Dems.
And scientists hit back at Mr Sunak over his suggestion it was a “mistake” to empower experts during the coronavirus pandemic, in a series of claims labelled “dangerous rubbish” by former No 10 aide Dominic Cummings.
The ex-chancellor told the Spectator magazine that he “wasn’t allowed to talk about the trade-off” of lockdowns during the early phases of the Covid crisis, which he said could have been “quicker”, and claimed to have fought against the “fear narrative” which drove public messaging.
The rivals have been urged to “think the unthinkable” and consider raising income tax to fund further support for those struggling with rocketing energy bills, with the Resolution Foundation think-tank saying a 1 per cent rise – largely funded by the wealthiest fifth of UK households – would raise £9.5bn a year.
