Rishi Sunak has said the Conservatives should “learn the lessons” of their general election defeat and “reflect” on their time in government as their conference gets under way. Mr Sunak described this year as a “difficult one” for the party as “too many good Conservatives have lost their seats”, in a piece for The House magazine.

This year has been a difficult one for the Conservative Party. We have had disappointing election results both nationally and locally. Too many

Former UK prime minister Rishi Sunak on Sunday urged his Conservative Party to "learn the lessons" of their crushing election defeat as it gathered to begin electing a new leader.

Leadership candidates Kemi Badenoch, Robert Jenrick, James Cleverly and Tom Tugendhat will all have an opportunity to address the conference.

The former PM, who led the Conservatives to their worst ever general election result in July, is making a fleeting appearance at the party's conference in Birmingham.