TORIES put their worst foot forward again today as their leadership contest descended into a mixture of the bizarre and the bad-mouthing.

Former cabinet minister Michael Gove, now taking up the editorship of the party’s house magazine the Spectator, attacked hard-right leadership hopeful Robert Jenrick for “looking like a Tory.” 

Mr Gove said that “one of Robert’s weaknesses is he looks like a typical Tory politician,” before conceding that he himself was a “Tory boy.”

“Given the strength of feeling against Tory boys expressed at the last general election, that’s a challenge,” he said.

Mr Jenrick hit back, accusing the perennial schemer of being “responsible for so much of the infighting and drama that has led our party to where it is.”

Fellow hard-right candidate Kemi Badenoch was attacked by veteran Tory parliamentarian Christopher Chope for being too concerned with her children.

Mr Chope, an MP unreconciled to the 20th and subsequent centuries, said: “What gives me concern is I understand from talking to colleagues that Kemi spends a lot of time with her family.

“But you can’t spend all your time with your family [while] being leader of the opposition.”

However, Mr Gove praised Ms Badenoch for enjoying a fight. 

“One of the criticisms directed at her is that she’s too willing to get involved in a scrap. I actually think it is a virtue,” he said.

Ms Badenoch offered her own policy initiative — a peerage for author JK Rowling.

Praising Ms Rowling’s gender-critical views, Ms Badenoch said: “I don’t know whether she would take it, but I certainly would give her a peerage.”