A Tory civil war has erupted after Theresa May condemned Kemi Badenoch’s “catastrophic” decision to ditch the party’s commitment to achieving Net Zero by 2050.

The former prime minister hit out at her successor as Conservative leader as party members prepare to gather for the party’s annual conference in Manchester.

Badenoch announced on Thursday that she would ditch the UK’s climate change act if the Tories win the next election, claiming it “tied us in red tape, loaded us with costs, and did nothing to cut global emissions”.

The law was initially passed by Labour with Tory support in 2008 before being updated when May was PM to commit the government to net zero carbon emissions by 2050.

Badenoch said: “Previous Conservative governments tried to make Labour’s climate laws work

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