Theresa May triumphs in first round on Tory leadership ballot, Liam Fox and Stephen Crabb withdraw

Theresa May - credit PA

Theresa May has scored an overwhelming victory in the first round of voting for the Tory leadership, while Liam Fox has now dropped out of the race after coming fifth.

Stephen Crabb, who came fourth, later also dropped out of the contest, throwing his weight behind May.

Justice Secretary Michael Gove in third vowed to fight on.

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Home Secretary May got the votes of 165 out of 329 colleagues, putting her in a commanding position.

Her closest rival was Energy Minister Andrea Leadsom, with 66 votes, while Gove got 48.

Crabb told the BBC: “I’ve taken the decision that I won’t put my forward to the next round of voting, but instead that I’ll be lending my wholehearted support to Theresa May, who is overwhelmingly in the best position to be the next Prime Minister and the leader of the Conservative party.”

Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon yesterday launched an attack on May after the Home Secretary suggested the status of EU nationals in the UK would form part of negotiations for Britain leaving the EU. 

“I think it is disgraceful. I think it is completely disgusting that you’ve got a candidate for prime minster who seems to think that human beings are bargaining chips. People who have come to Scotland to other parts of the United Kingdom have built lives here. They’ve raised family here, got jobs here, have paid taxes here," Sturgeon told Channel Four News.

Tory MPs will vote again from the remaining three candidates on Thursday.