Date of BBC1 Conservative leadership debate confirmed
Boris Johnson and Jeremy Hunt will face off with Andrew Neil on 12th July
The two candidates for our next Prime Minister will make their appeals to a BBC1 audience at 7pm on Friday 12th July, in a series of interviews presided over by Andrew Neil.
The programme will not be a head-to-head debate in the traditional sense. Instead, The Andrew Neil Interviews: Jeremy Hunt & Boris Johnson will feature two consecutive half hour interviews with the candidates.
The formats of the various debates have been a point of contention, with Johnson previously refusing to take part in a planned Sky News debate, leading to its cancellation.
Members of the Conservative party are currently voting, with the results of the final ballot set to be announced the week beginning 22nd July.
Announcing the Interviews programme Fran Unsworth, Director of BBC News, said: “Andrew Neil is one of the best political interviewers on television.
“He’ll be questioning the two candidates on behalf of audiences up and down the country, including the Conservative Party members who are voting for their next leader. Their decision will, of course, affect all of us, so we think it’s strongly in the public interest that we put the two candidates and their policy ambitions to the test.”
The Andrew Neil Interviews: Jeremy Hunt & Boris Johnson will be broadcast 7pm, Friday 12th July on BBC 1
