Northern Ireland’s Democratic Unionist party has welcomed the hard Brexit stance of the two contenders to become the Conservative leader as they head for hustings in Northern Ireland, and urged the pair to “stand up to” to Dublin over its support for the backstop arrangements for the Irish border.

Sammy Wilson, the party’s Brexit spokesman, said he welcomed commitments from Jeremy Hunt and Boris Johnson to ditch the backstop arrangements designed to avoid physical checks on the Irish border.

Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, he said: “What we’ve heard so far, we’re very pleased about. They have said that the current agreement is not going to work. They have both said that they are committed to the union. And thirdly, they’re both saying that we will leave on 31 October.”

Wilson, one of 10 DUP MPs who are keeping the Conservative government in power, urged Hunt or Johnson to push back against Irish warnings about the imposition of a hard border with Northern Ireland, when one of them becomes prime minister.

Wilson said: “We know the Irish. If you vacillate they’ll push you around. If you stand up to them, they will start to take you seriously.”

Wilson claimed many in Ireland now believed that the Irish taoiseach, Leo Varadkar, had “overstated” Ireland’s case in Brexit negotiations to the potential detriment of Ireland’s economy.

Profile Jeremy Hunt's Tory leadership campaign Show Personal style His style is notably technocratic, with few rhetorical flourishes and an emphasis on his consensual approach and long record as a minister, notably during more than five years as health secretary, a traditional graveyard of ministerial careers. Hunt’s attempts to talk up a backstory as an 'underestimated' entrepreneur can fall flat given he is also the son of an admiral and was head boy at Charterhouse. Overall, Hunt’s approach can seem uninspiring and hard to pin down in terms of core beliefs, hence the 'Theresa in trousers' nickname among some Tory MPs. Hunt has made headlines by promising to repeal the ban on fox hunting, while always facing scrutiny on his views on the availability of abortion. His campaign team have decided to take the fight directly to rival Boris Johnson though, with Hunt taking part in a Twitter Q&A session as a direct response to Johnson's refusal to appear on a Sky TV head-to-head debate. The hashtag: #BoJoNoShow. Brexit He says a new deal with the EU is possible by 31 October and he would send a cross-party negotiating team to Brussels, including members of the DUP. He would countenance leaving the EU without a deal but is notably more wary than rival Boris Johnson. Taxation Has been fairly silent on this, beyond a proposal to cut corporation tax from 19% to 12.5%, which according to the IFS would cost an estimated £13bn a year. Even at 19%, the UK rate is well below European and global averages. Public spending Before the campaign began he called for a doubling of defence spending, but he has since pulled back slightly, saying only that it should increase. He has argued that cuts to social care budgets had gone too far. Climate and environment Hunt backs the 2050 target for zero net carbon emissions and has called for 'sensible tax incentives' to encourage green initiatives, but very little beyond this. Foreign policy A likely strength for him, as he has been seen as a solid foreign secretary, an impression burnished by taking over from the chaotic Johnson. This has been a key part of his pitch. Peter Walker Political correspondent Photograph: Luke Dray/Getty Images Europe

Wilson said warnings about the implications of no deal were a red herring and that tariffs could still be collected and regulatory compliance still imposed without a hard border.

And he welcomed the departure of Olly Robbins, the civil servant in charge of Brexit negotiations and some of his team. “I think it’s good some of the civil servants who were involved in the negotiations before are now standing down, and maybe a clean team will get the message over to Brussels,” Wilson said.

Profile Boris Johnson's Tory leadership campaign Show Personal style A late-night altercation between Tory leadership favourite, Boris Johnson, and his partner, Carrie Symonds initially changed the dynamics of Johnson's campaign. He had been either invisible or deliberately sober to the point of dullness, when his usual primary draw to Tory members is a self-created sense of optimism and fun. Much is also made of his supposed broad appeal to the electorate, evidenced by two terms as London mayor. His bizarre claim to make model cardboard buses has raised eyebrows. In most political contests, Johnson’s character – he has lost more than one job for lying, and has a complex and opaque personal life – would be a big issue, but among the Tory faithful he seemingly receives a free pass. It remains to be seen what impact that late-night police visit will have on his chances. Brexit He has promised to push for a new deal while insisting the UK will leave the EU come what may on 31 October, even if it involves no deal. While his hard Brexit supporters are adamant this is a cast-iron guarantee of leaving on that date, elsewhere Johnson has been somewhat less definitive. Asked about the date in a BBC TV debate, Johnson said only that it was 'eminently feasible', although he then went on to tell TalkRadio that the 31 October deadline was 'do or die'. Taxation His main pledge has been to raise the threshold for the 40% higher tax rate from £50,000 to £80,000, at a cost of almost £10bn a year, which would help about 3 million higher earners, a demographic with a fairly sizeable crossover into Tory members. Johnson’s camp insist it would be part of a wider – and so far unknown – package of tax changes. Public spending He has said relatively little, beyond promising a fairly small increase in schools funding, as well as talking about the need to roll out fast broadband across the country. Johnson has generally hinted he would loosen the purse strings, but given his prior fondness for big-ticket projects – London’s cancelled garden bridge, the mooted 'Boris island' airport – perhaps expect more of a focus on infrastructure projects than services. Climate and environment This is unlikely to be a big issue for Conservative party members, and Johnson has not said much on this beyond confirming his general support for the new government target of cutting greenhouse gas emissions to a net zero by 2050. Foreign policy Also unlikely to be a big issue among Tory members, beyond vague platitudes on 'global Britain', it could be a weak spot for Johnson given his poor performance as foreign secretary. He was seen as something of a joke by diplomats – both UK and foreign – and is likely to face more questioning over his gaffe about the jailed British-Iranian woman Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe Peter Walker Political correspondent Photograph: Isabel Infantes/AFP

Johnson and Hunt will visit Belfast for the latest Tory hustings events as they appeal for the votes of just over 500 Tory members in Northern Ireland. They are likely to be grilled on their proposals to resolve the Irish border issue and remove the controversial backstop.

Hunt has said he believes there is “technology there now” to provide a solution, while Johnson has suggested the backstop issue could be solved during the implementation period.

The hustings come after Hunt told Sky News that the German chancellor, Angela Merkel, was willing to look at new Brexit proposals put forward by the next prime minister.

He said: “I’ve had a conversation with Angela Merkel and … [she said]: ‘Of course we will look at any proposals made by a new UK prime minister,’ because she wants to solve this problem.

“And providing we’re sensible, and I think the approach that I’ve laid out is a sensible approach and a fair approach, and I think that it’s in Germany’s interests as well.

“What she has said is she will look at the package and I think she will look at it with an open mind.”

Johnson, who rejected an invitation to take part in the interview, told party members during a “telephone town hall” event on Monday evening that he was the “right guy now to deliver for our party”.

“We need someone who believes in Brexit and can deliver it,” he said.

Meanwhile, writing in the Daily Telegraph, the former party leader William Hague said both candidates had “great merits” but added that he believed Hunt would make the better prime minister.