Sir Andy, a former managing director of John Lewis who was twice elected as a Conservative mayor in the West Midlands, said “the forces of populism on the left and the right are rampant across the western world”.
He said the new movement was about saying “no, they are not in Britain”.
“There is still a really, really strong centre-right who believe in Britain, believe in its institutions, believe in its future, and who want to build things up and not knock things down.”
Baroness Davidson said Badenoch was a “solid Conservative who can speak naturally to a broad range of people who are current supporters or potential supporters”.
But she added there was a “large group of people who are potential supporters, where she might not be the best messenger”.
Baroness Davidson, who was Scottish leader when the Conservatives replaced Labour as the second-largest party in the Scottish Parliament, said: “This is about people that feel that the Conservative party left them but also feel like they don’t have a home in Labour or the Liberal Democrats.”
Writing on X, she said: “We want to speak to those who feel politically homeless and to work with them – and business – to develop practical, pragmatic policies to improve lives & opportunities.”
