The National Cyber Security Center said the party’s new online system, which allows members to change their vote after casting it, could be exploited by malicious actors. The system has now been scrapped and the voting process has been delayed, with some ballots not arriving with members until August 11. Members can still vote by post but have been urged to vote online to save the party money. “The Conservative Party council has a huge responsibility to ensure that any campaign is free from interference, is valid and has integrity,” Lord Crundas said. “This is a big responsibility for the board because if there is just one invalid vote due to a cyber attack, the entire vote and campaign will be destroyed, the result will lack integrity, credibility and no one will trust the board and the result. . “What you need is time to make sure there is no cyber- or foreign interference in our election systems. There are very powerful people out there who have the resources and the money to completely disrupt our political system and you can’t afford a mistake.” The peer suggested the party should “immediately suspend the leadership campaign” and “reject the Prime Minister’s resignation and ask him to stay on while the Board resolves any cyber issues”. He proposed a “Boris ballot” of Tory members, adding: “If members vote to keep Boris, then there is no need for a leadership campaign and other cyber security threats.” Lord Crundas and David Campbell-Bannerman, a former Tory MEP, had previously campaigned for a “Boris ballot” to be part of the leadership race. The pair say they have more than 12,000 signatures from party members who want to hold a referendum on Johnson’s resignation before continuing the leadership race.
